Glenn McConnell Appeared on White Nationalist Radio Show, 'Political Cesspool,' in 2007
Yesterday, we explored the听听of South Carolina Lt. Gov. Glenn McConnell, who was recently听听to be the next president of the College of Charleston. As I noted, McConnell has made promotion of Confederate history and culture a hallmark of his three decades in public office.
That helps explain how, in 2007, then-State Sen. McConnell on a notorious white nationalist radio program 鈥� the Political Cesspool 鈥� that hosts the听, the former Grand Wizard of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan. According to the program notes, McConnell appeared during Confederate History Month to discuss the 鈥渓egacy of the crew of the C.S.S. Hunley submarine as well as the flying of the Confederate Flag on the grounds of the state capitol.鈥� He was described as 鈥渧ery much pro-South.鈥�
The Political Cesspool, hosted by James Edwards, declares in its 鈥溾�� that it represents 鈥渁 philosophy that is pro-White鈥� and aims to 鈥渞evive the White birthrate above replacement level fertility and beyond to grow the percentage of Whites in the world relative to other races.鈥� On the same听, you鈥檒l find an endorsement from听, a segregationist radio show host, who praises Edwards for giving voice to the 鈥渓egitimate complaints that gentiles have and our fear of the genocide of immigration and intermarriage.鈥�
The program has hosted a听听of white nationalists, racists, anti-Semites and far-right figures. Edwards believes that 鈥淪ecession is a right of all people and individuals鈥� and uses his show to honor 鈥渢hose who tried to make it successful from 1861 鈥� 1865.鈥� As part of that effort to 鈥渉onor鈥� Confederate veterans, Edwards brought McConnell on during Confederate History Month.
McConnell听听the Charleston听Post and Courier听yesterday that the only people still debating the Confederate flag at the South Carolina capitol are extremists on both sides. 鈥淚'm not going to go back and open up old wounds,鈥� he said. Yet there he was in 2007 attacking the NAACP over the flag issue on a white nationalist radio show.
McConnell, asked by Edwards to lay out the history of the flag debate, the state hoisted the Confederate flag to mark the centennial of the Civil War. 鈥淣obody had a problem with it until all of a sudden, I believe it was in the 1980s, the NAACP discovered that they were offended by it,鈥� he said. 鈥淚n the year of 2001, we agreed to remove the flag from the top of the capitol.鈥�
McConnell said they 鈥渉ad biracial and bipartisan support for that, and everybody was happy, but the NAACP.鈥� 鈥淣ow they come back and they argue they want it taken off the grounds because it鈥檚 Confederate.鈥� 鈥淔or all fair-minded people the controversy was resolved long ago.鈥�
But McConnell said the NAACP was 鈥渞eturning to the trough of controversy, they鈥檙e trying to feed on passions, they鈥檙e appealing to prejudice and they鈥檙e trying to inflame constituents and citizens across our state.鈥� 鈥淲hat鈥檚 sad about that is that irresponsible grandstanding threatens to unravel the fabric of mutual respect and to divide our state for decades to come.鈥�
Well, isn鈥檛 that rich. There鈥檚 nothing like going on a white nationalist program called the Political Cesspool to nurture the 鈥渇abric of mutual respect鈥� and attack the NAACP for 鈥渇anning the flames of intolerance.鈥�
