Ted Cruz and Beto O 'Rourke agree that the dead KKK leader should no longer be honored in Tennessee



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Former Texas political rivals Ted Cruz and Beto O'Rourke found common ground on Friday when they condemned Tennessee's long-standing law celebrating Nathan Bedford Forrest, a late general of the United States. Confederate army and great wizard of the Ku Klux Klan.

Tennessee's governor, Bill Lee, signed Friday a proclamation that marks Nathan Bedford's Forrest Day Saturday across the state. The proclamation marks six days of special observance that the law requires the governor of Tennessee to sign each year. Other holidays protected by the Tennessee State Code are Confederate Decoration Day, Robert E. Lee Day, Veterans Day, Remembrance Day, Abraham Lincoln Day and Andrew Day. Jackson.

Cruz disagreed that such a holiday in honor of Forrest should continue to be observed. He tweeted, "That's wrong." Nathan Bedford Forrest was a Confederate General and a delegate to the Democratic Convention of 1868. He was also a slave trader and the first great magician of KKK.Tennessee should not have a official day (tomorrow) honoring him, change the law. "

Shortly after, the Democratic presidential candidate and former rival of the Senate with Cruz, Beto O. Rourke, agreed. Sharing Cruz's original tweet, O 'Rourke simply stated, "I agree, change the law."

Forrest, who served as general for Confederation during the Civil War, has long been a controversial historical figure. He was credited with ordering the notorious massacre that followed the Battle of Fort Pillow, during which Confederate soldiers killed mostly black Union troops who had already surrendered to the United States. . After the war, he became known for his leadership at the beginning of the Ku Klux Klan, eventually becoming the first great wizard of the organization.

The governor does not have the unilateral power to reject the holiday, although many have called on Lee to condemn her yesterday by not signing the proclamation. Many Tennesseans have also lobbied for a bust of Forrest to be removed from the capital building.

In response to negative reactions to Friday's proclamation, the governor's office said in a statement: "To fulfill our legal obligation, Governor Lee has signed the same proclamation as the one signed in recent years," he said. said the representative. "Let's be clear, no new law has been signed, it is a proclamation according to the law in force that the governor must follow."

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