Will McCollum Apologize For Extremist Votes Against Martin Luther King Jr. Day?

NEWS FROM THE FLORIDA DEMOCRATIC PARTY

For Immediate Release: Jan. 18, 2010

Will McCollum Apologize For Extremist Votes Against Martin Luther King Jr. Day?

Tallahassee, FL - As Bill McCollum joins other Floridians in celebrating the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., will former Congressman McCollum apologize for joining other fringe members in Congress in their opposition to Martin Luther King Jr. Day being a holiday?

As the Reid Report blog, in asking if McCollum will apologize, noted today:

The point here is that for the media on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a politician's history on the matter has historically been considered relevant, if he was in office and thus able to vote on it, even if that politician has little chance with black voters, particularly when that candidate is running for a significant or statewide office (and I'm thinking governor of Florida counts.) ...

After all, McCollum didn't just cast an inconspicuous vote with the minority back in 1983. He also was part of an even smaller minority of just 42 House members who voted in May of 1989 against funding and extending the life of the Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Holiday Commission, whose job was to promote the observance of the holiday (despite Ronald Reagan having signed the King holiday into law in 1983, the commission had never been funded.)

Questions Former Congressman McCollum Needs To Answer

1)      Will you apologize to the people of Florida who are observing Martin Luther King Jr. Day today, apologize for your vote against the MLK Federal Holiday Commission and for standing with your own party's extremists rather than the people of Florida?

2)      You were part of a very small, almost 'fringe,' group of Congress-people who voted against the MLK holiday. WHY did you oppose it? And, if you regret it today, isn't that merely because you're running for governor now -- and you didn't have to worry about winning African-American votes back when you served in Congress?

3)      As you attend events in observance of MLK Day, how do you reconcile your own opposition to honor the civil rights leaders on the anniversary of his birth?

Background

McCollum Voted Against Making Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday A National Holiday.  In 1983, McCollum voted against a bill to designate the third Monday of every January as a federal holiday in honor of the late civil rights leader Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. (HR 3706, Vote 291, 8/2/83 and The Miami Herald, 08/03/83)

McCollum Voted Against Commission To Promote The Observance Of A Federal Holiday In Honor Of Martin Luther King.  Bill McCollum, on May 9, 1989, was one of only 42 U.S. House members who voted against "a five-year extension of the Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Holiday Commission", a commission established "to promote the observance of the federal holiday in honor of King."  The "House, in a 359-42 vote, passed the bill in the same form approved by the Senate ... 90-7." The bill gave "the commission a five-year budget of $1.5 million," "providing federal money for its operation" for the first time.  (HR1385, Roll Call Vote 45, 5/9/89; Motion agreed to 359-42; AP, 05/10/89 and Los Angeles Times, 05/10/89)

• St. Petersburg Times Called McCollum's Opposition "An Embarrassment To Florida" And A Demonstration Of How Far Out Of The Mainstream He Is. The St. Petersburg Times opined: "only three Floridians" in the U.S. House voted "to kill all federal funding of the commission." They were: "Mike Bilirakis, Andy Ireland and Bill McCollum. President Bush has indicated that he will sign it, which demonstrates just how far out of the mainstream are Mack, Bilirakis, Ireland and McCollum." The Times called their opposition "An embarrassment to Florida". (Editorial, St. Petersburg Times, 05/10/89)

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