Democrats Reject GOP’s Anti-Bigotry Bill

House Democrats on Tuesday rebuffed a GOP-backed resolution condemning bigotry because it did not name the white supremacist Council of Conservative Citizens.

Republican leaders had hoped to use the resolution to quell controversy over the council, which has hosted several Republican leaders at its meetings and has posted anti-black and anti-Semitic views on its Internet Web site. The bill called on Americans to “reject the forces of hatred and bigotry wherever and in whatever form they may be found.”

The vote for the measure was 254 to 152, with 24 voting “present.” A two-thirds vote was needed for passage because the resolution was brought to the floor under special rules. Only one Republican--Rep. Marshall “Mark” Sanford (R-S.C.)--voted with Democrats against the bill. Voting for the bill were 36 Democrats.

Democrats wanted Republican leaders such as Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.) and Rep. Bob Barr (R-Ga.), who have spoken to the council, to condemn the group by name. Barr has condemned the group’s teachings. Many Democrats eager to single out the group found themselves in the awkward position of arguing against the more general anti-racism bill.

“This bill is intended to be serious but it’s really a joke,” said Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.), who led the floor fight against the measure. “It is a cover-up for those Republicans who do not want to condemn the Council of Conservative Citizens because so many Republicans have been associated with this group.”

The bill’s author, Rep. J. C. Watts Jr. of Oklahoma, the House GOP conference chairman and the only black Republican in Congress, said that the resolution applied to all 537 hate groups recognized by the Southern Poverty Law Center, including the council--even if it did not mention any by name.

“To be so particular would be to commit a crime of omission by giving a pass to other groups that espouse prejudice,” he said during floor debate. “In effect, it would be saying their bigotry is not so offensive as to be worthy of our consideration.”

Spurred on by a coalition of civil rights groups and moderate GOP activists, Rep. Robert Wexler (D-Fla.) introduced a bill last month that “condemns the racism and bigotry espoused by the Council of Conservative Citizens.”

Wexler complained during the debate that the Watts bill was rushed to the floor for a vote while his legislation has been languishing for more than seven weeks.

The Council of Conservative Citizens has been an issue--albeit little noticed--on Capitol Hill since late last year when the media reported that Lott had spoken to the group and praised its conservative values. Initially, Lott denied speaking to the group but changed his story after pictures were published showing him addressing the group and hosting its leaders in his Senate offices.

“I’m upset with Trent Lott because he would put his party in a position like this,” said Armstrong Williams, a black conservative pundit with close ties to GOP leaders. “It is so hard for us to attract black voters to the Republican Party. Then they refuse to call out a racist group like the CCC for their vile views. This has been a character test of the leadership of our party and they failed.”

Faye Anderson, president of the Douglass Policy Institute, a Washington-based group of black Republicans, declared: “The people at the top of the party just don’t understand that the issue isn’t about all hate groups. It’s about this group.”

Among the California delegation, Republicans all voted for the bill, as did three Democrats--Reps. Bob Filner of San Diego, Brad Sherman of Sherman Oaks and Ellen O. Tauscher of Pleasanton. Rep. Tom Lantos of San Mateo did not vote.