One of wokism’s many unpleasant aspects is its mania for erasing the past. Thus, we have efforts to take down statues, especially of Confederate generals, although other figures from our past, like Christopher Columbus and even Abraham Lincoln, have not been immune. The Charlottesville incident that Democrats love to talk about began, as I recall, with a controversy about removing a statue of Robert E. Lee. If I remember correctly, that actually happened.
The Biden administration also re-named some major military bases that were named after Confederate figures, including Fort Bragg and Fort Hood. And it wasn’t just changing old names, as, for example, they named a naval vessel after gay icon Harvey Milk. The Defense Department recently re-named that ship after a Navy Medal of Honor winner. The conflict continues.
What follows happened across my Instagram feed a couple of days ago. I checked it out, and it is true. President Eisenhower had a portrait of Robert E. Lee in his office. One Dr. Scott wrote Eisenhower to ask why he so honored a Confederate. Eisenhower wrote a rather lengthy reply that seems like a relic of a better time, but perhaps can serve as a guide in our present difficulties:
Dear Dr. Scott:
Respecting your August 1 [1960] inquiry calling attention to my often expressed admiration for General Robert E. Lee, I would say, first, that we need to understand that at the time of the War between the States, the issue of secession had remained unresolved for more than 70 years. Men of probity, character, public standing and unquestioned loyalty, both North and South, had disagreed over this issue as a matter of principle from the day our Constitution was adopted.
General Robert E. Lee was, in my estimation, one of the supremely gifted men produced by our Nation. He believed unswervingly in the Constitutional validity of his cause which, until 1865, was still an arguable question in America; he was a poised and inspiring leader, true to the high trust reposed in him by millions of his fellow citizens; he was thoughtful yet demanding of his officers and men, forbearing with captured enemies but ingenious, unrelenting, and personally courageous in battle, and never disheartened by a reverse or obstacle. Through all his many trials, he remained selfless almost to a fault and unfailing in his faith in God.
Taken altogether, he was noble as a leader and as a man, and unsullied as read the pages of our history. From deep conviction, I simply say this: a nation of men of Lee’s calibre would be unconquerable in spirit and soul. Indeed, to the degree that present-day American youth will strive to emulate his rare qualities, including his devotion to this land as revealed in his painstaking efforts to help heal the Nation’s wounds once the bitter struggle was over, we, in our own time of danger in a divided world, will be strengthened and our love of freedom sustained. Such are the reasons that I proudly display the picture of this great American on my office wall.
Sincerely,
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Such historical perspective and generosity of spirit are in short supply these days. It seems odd that the man who organized the greatest military undertaking in human history, and served two successful terms as president, should be chronically underestimated, but that is the fact. I suppose it is because Eisenhower was a Republican.
It occurs to me that one might say almost exactly the same thing about Ulysses Grant, the father of modern warfare and the man who brought Lee down. But that is another story.
