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McCain Apologizes for Opposing MLK Holiday
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Candidate
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| Contributor | RBH |
| Last Edited | RBH Apr 04, 2008 08:05pm |
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| Category | News |
| News Date | Saturday, April 5, 2008 02:00:00 AM UTC0:0 |
| Description | Sen. John McCain apologized Friday for opposing a federal holiday honoring Martin Luther King Jr. as he honored the slain civil rights leader at the hotel where he was assassinated 40 years ago.
In a speech outside the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, McCain said he was "slow ... to give greatness its due" before eventually supporting a state MLK holiday in Arizona.
"I was wrong and eventually realized that, in time to give full support for a state holiday in Arizona," he said. "We can all be a little late sometimes in doing the right thing, and Dr. King understood this about his fellow Americans."
McCain recalled hearing of King's death from his prison in Vietnam, where his captors allowed only bad news to be heard.
"The enemy had correctly calculated that the news from Memphis would deeply wound morale, and leave us worried and afraid for our country," he said. "Doubtless it boosted our captors' morale, confirming their belief that America was a lost cause, and that the future belonged to them."
But McCain said King's legacy would prove his captors wrong. "The cause of Dr. King was bigger than any one man, and could not be stopped by force of violence. Struggle is rewarded, in God's own time. Wrongs are set right and evil is overcome," he said.
With the speech, McCain neared the end of a week-long biography tour aimed at reminding voters of his personal history. |
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