Jeff Sessions gives tribute to Strom Thurmond (June 1997)

Praises Thurmond's commitment to "law and order" and Thurmond's successful push to destroy parole and severely curtail bail in the federal criminal justice system; thanks Thurmond profusely for his unwavering support during Sessions's failed 1986 U.S. district judge nomination. Perhaps most significantly, Sessions ends with a statement he admits "some might think it not politically correct" lauding Thurmond in particular for representing his "region, as a Southerner." This is obvious code for "Confederate heritage" and its racism, which Sessions almost goes out of his way to make more obvious with his "politically correct" remark. close