The Commonwealth of Virginia will now be properly represented by an actual patriot who embodied the principle of liberty and justice for all, And not a traitor who took up arms against the United States to preserve the brutal institution of chattel slavery. At the time of Robert E. Lee's Statue Unveiling in 1909, Representative Charles Curtis, a Kansas Republican who later on went to serve as Senate Majority leader and our nation's 31st Vice President, remarked, I think it is a disgrace. He was a traitor to his country. And I will not sanction an official honor for a traitor. We can remember our deeply troubled past in museums, but should never be given a place of honor in the halls of Congress. (04:32–05:00)
CLAIM
Asserts that Charles Curtis called Robert E. Lee a traitor at his statue unveiling in 1909.
This is an excerpt from a raw transcript. The assertions have not been audited or verified. Tap the video to view the source footage and understand the context.
