John Conyers is a man who authored the MLK Day Holiday Act: Conyers says his biggest achievement has been the Martin Luther King Holiday Act of 1983
April 3, 2008

John Conyers is a man who authored the MLK Day Holiday Act:

Conyers says his biggest achievement has been the Martin Luther King Holiday Act of 1983. "[It's] by far and away the thing I am most proud of," he says of the 15-year struggle to make that dream a reality."

He was down in Memphis at the tribute today and blasted John McCain for voting against his bill in 1983 to make MLK day a National holiday. The MSNBC host as usual had to stick up for McCain by saying that he was there apologizing for that vote so all should be forgiven. That only infuriated Conyers.

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Conyers: When John McCain was my colleague in the House and I introduced the Holiday bill, he voted against it in 1983...Now I believe in forgiveness, but it's incredible that all he can do is show up on April 4th and think that everything is OK. We're not just African Americans, but we're most people.

Host: Rep. Conyers I think in all fairness we should say , perhaps you did not hear it but certainly John McCain did offer an apology for that first vote in 1983 when you did put forward that bill.

You had not heard that? He did make that apology sir so that he regretted voting that way back then.

Conyers: Yea, well look. I'm happy. That was in 1983, he didn't make any apology, he didn't make any apologies in 1987, so I guess I'm thrilled and forgiving that finally when he's running for President he remembers to apologize. No, that's great. (satirically)

Host: Well, he has done so today and perhaps you'll take that as some sort of appeasement, but anyway...

Updated: Nice job the host did in trying to praise John McCain's phony apology today. Yea, just get appeased! I mean this is ridiculous. It's like her job to make excuses for John McCain's actions.

Good job by Conyers for calling McSame on it too. Conyers was obviously not buying her line of reasoning. If John McCain thinks he can go down to Memphis and throw out a few words to try and appease his actions, he's got another thing coming. Of course the media will paint him as a brave man, straight talking away his prior sins, but he was almost 50 years old when he joined the HOUSE of Representatives and voted down MLK Day.

Matt Stoller finds an interesting graphic. Rick Perlstein takes us down the Conservative memory lane with excerpts of Nixonland.

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