Mitch McConnell Wants to Remove Jefferson Davis Statue from Kentucky Capitol
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) returns to his office after the weekly Senate Republican Policy Luncheon May 12, 2015 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.
Photo by Alex Wong/Getty ImagesKentucky's most powerful Republican politician on Tuesday suggested taking down the statue of Confederate President Jefferson Davis from his state's Capitol.
The surprising declaration by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky's senior senator, came as officials of both parties in several states were moving to remove another powerful symbol of the Civil War — the battle flag of the Confederacy — from positions that suggest any official endorsement. The gunman who allegedly perpetrated a massacre in a black South Carolina church this week used the flag, among other symbols, to express his adherence to white supremacy.