SHAMWOW

As we remember Martin Luther King Jr. and his holiday, let us remember all the Republicans who opposed its recognition, including John McCain and Ronald Reagan. (McCain now admits he was wrong.)

Senator Jesse Helms (R-North Carolina) led opposition to the bill and questioned whether King was important enough to receive such an honor. He also criticized King's opposition to the Vietnam War and accused him of espousing "action-oriented Marxism".

And from Helms' wikipedia entry,

Helms opposed many progressive policies regarding race, such as busing, the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act. Helms called the Civil Rights Act of 1964 'the single most dangerous piece of legislation ever introduced in the Congress'...

There are legitimate reasons to oppose a workday off, so I'm not saying everyone who voted against it is racist. All I'm saying is that every racist did vote against it.

It's hard to believe that RFK completely winged this. This is also the only time he ever mentioned his brother's death in public.