Popular News From Popular Sites: How a presidential power-play helped undo U.S. segregation 50 years ago

Saturday, July 5, 2014

How a presidential power-play helped undo U.S. segregation 50 years ago

U.S President Lyndon B. Johnson is shown in Nov. 17, 1967 file photo. The landmark American anti-segregation law adopted 50 years ago owes its existence to a presidential tour de force of flattery, fear and federal pork. The U.S. Civil Rights Act might seem obvious today, but at the time, it appeared condemned to failure. The story of its adoption remains relevant as a masterpiece in American lawmaking and the use of presidential power. Lyndon Johnson's success in ramming it through seems surreal in today's deadlocked Washington. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP Photo The story of its adoption remains relevant as a masterpiece in American lawmaking and the use of presidential power. Lyndon Johnson's success in ramming it through is unfathomable in today's deadlocked Washington. A few days after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, the new president informed a mourning country that he was determined to advance his predecessor's stalled bill to end segregation in schools and businesses. In private, he spewed disdain on the Kennedy White House's legislative savvy.




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