In 1991, Republican David Duke, a former grand wizard of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, with ties to other white supremacist and neo-Nazi groups, ran for governor of Louisiana. His main opponent was Democrat Edwin Edwards, who had also been dogged by charges of corruption. The odious nature of both candidates led to a split among the voters of Louisiana. The race drew national attention when then-President George H.W. Bush came out against Duke.
A humorous side note was the appearance of bumper stickers proclaiming: “Vote For the Crook. It’s Important.”
Then-private citizen Donald Trump called Duke “a bigot, a racist, a problem.” He also said that Bush was right to come out against Duke’s campaign.
Duke lost the race, but won a majority of the white vote, which Trump found troubling. “I hate seeing what it represents,” Trump said, referring to what he called the “anger vote.”
In an impromptu news conference on Nov. 21, President Donald Trump all but endorsed embattled candidate Roy Moore for the vacant Senate seat in Alabama. He called Moore’s Democratic opponent weak on all the issues. President Trump has implied that he needs Moore’s vote in the Senate to support his agenda.
Perhaps The Donald should distribute bumper stickers among the voters of Alabama reading: “Vote For the Pedophile. It’s Important!”
William E. Hewitt Jr., Salt Lake City
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