Yup. He did that.
Gregory Rec/Portland Press Herald via Getty ImagesMaine Gov. Paul LePage
Just when we thought politicians couldn’t say anything more stupid, Maine Governor Paul LePage took the microphone.
Taking down Confederate monuments, the Republican said at a Thursday press conference, would be “just like” taking down the memorial honoring those killed in the September 11 attacks.
LePage made this insane comparison after being asked about the deadly violence that took place in Charlottesville over the weekend, when white supremacist groups protested the removal of a Robert E. Lee statue.
“How can future generations learn if we’re going to erase history?” he asked. “That’s disgusting. They should study their history — they don’t even know the history of this country and they are trying to take monuments down. Listen, whether we like it or not, this is what our history is.”
This reverend perfectly explains why Confederate statues don’t celebrate ‘history’ — they celebrate white supremacy pic.twitter.com/rTXkCufLtK
— NowThis (@nowthisnews) August 17, 2017
Here, LePage poses an interesting and intellectually stimulating question: How on earth could people ever learn history without big bronze statues?
If we take away the tributes to people who tried to destroy our country, future generations will almost certainly forget all about the Civil War.
Just like how everyone totally forgot about Hitler because there aren’t enough statues of him and his stupid mustache.
Oh wait, they didn’t. Because books exist.
All these folks worried about erasing history when the Confederate statues come down will be thrilled to learn about the existence of books.
— Jamil Smith (@JamilSmith) August 16, 2017
Jamming his foot even further into his mouth, LePage then decided to bring 9/11 into the mix.
“To me, it’s just like going to New York City right now and taking down the monument of those who perished in 9/11,” he said. “It will come to that.”
This comparison would make more sense if LePage was talking about taking down a monument honoring the terrorists responsible for 9/11.
But we don’t have that monument, because it would be incredibly offensive.
The contest is over! Maine Governor Paul LePage has said the dumbest thing about Confederate monuments. https://t.co/v2QBX6OwDL pic.twitter.com/arKrorgjMi
— Matt O’Brien (@ObsoleteDogma) August 17, 2017
LePage said that he didn’t even find out about the Charlottesville violence until Tuesday — three days later — because he doesn’t watch TV or read newspapers.
Journalists, he explained, are “pencil terrorists.”
Echoing the views of Donald Trump, LePage said that the counter-protestors in Virginia were “equally as bad” as the white supremacists and Nazis. He then called the far-left demonstrators “disgusting.”
Defending himself against the torrent of backlash these comments received, LePage Tweeted that he’s been speaking out against the KKK for seven whole years!
I’ve been speaking against KKK for 7 years. KKK came after Maine’s Franco-Americans in 1920s. No room in our country for hate. #mepolitics
— Paul R. LePage (@Governor_LePage) August 17, 2017
So basically, everything LePage has said in the past 24 hours has been ridiculously insensitive. Just give me a few months to carve a statue so we can remember it forever.
Next, read about some petitioners want to replace a Confederate monument with a statue of a manatee.
