The Revisionist

.

Bachmann Slavery: Watch Anderson Cooper Blast Bachmann for "Rewriting History"

January 26, 2011 -- 3:22 PM

Bachmann slavery—Anderson Cooper methodically ripped apart GOP Rep. Michele Bachmann’s account of slavery in early American history during his “Keeping Them Honest” segment Monday night.

The CNN host blasted the Minnesota congresswoman’s recent statement about the founding of America, including claims that the Founding Fathers worked to abolish slavery and that early America as colorless.

Bachman, speaking at an Iowans for Tax Relief event, recounted the early “remarkable” America, a nation where “it didn’t matter the color of their skin, it didn’t matter their language, it didn’t matter their economic status.”

“Once you got here,” she added, “we were all the same.”

Cooper said Bachman’s claims were factually erroneous that showed she was “[deliberately] rewriting our history” or had a “shaky grasp” on reality. He also pointed out the hardships many ethnic groups had faced, including Irish Immigrants, Japanese-Americans who were placed in internment camps during WWII and enslaved Africans who were brought to the U.S. against their will.

Bachman, a 2012 presidential hopeful, also mentioned that our Founding Fathers “worked tirelessly…until slavery was extinguished in the country…men like John Quincy Adams.”

Erroneous again, Cooper says, pointing out that many founders, including James Madison and Thomas Jefferson, owned slaves. Not to mention that John Quincy Adams—although in fact a supporter of the anti-slavery movement—was not a founding father and died years before the Emancipation Proclamation.

Cooper stressed that his critique of Bachmann’s statements was not to bully, but to highlight the significance of politicians, and even news anchors, who speak from large platforms, to speak facts and have knowledge of American history. He also noted that Bachman declined a request to appear on the show to defend her statements.

For highlights of Bachmann’s speech and Cooper’s critique, watch the video below.