I got an email first thing this morning from the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. That’s how I knew. Jesse Helms passed heavenward on July 4th 2008. What a year.
I have fleeting impressions of Helms who was engaged in the heaviest political battles at a time when I was engaged in basic political growth and development.
I remember he was the target of left-wing hate speech and scurrilous distortions (from both Parties) for being on point in the fight against the destruction of American Liberty and Culture.
I already knew the price of confronting evil.
I remember, in 1994, that he stood, virtually alone, against the tide of Clinton’s nefarious Education “Goals 2000.” The “Helms Amendment” would have witheld Federal Funds from any School District that used it to deny religious freedom to a student (one of its primary objectives).
Helms faced, not only opposition, but slanderous indictments of his motives from, among others, Ted Kennedy.
Slade Gorton voted, predictably, with Kennedy. And I remember I got the opportunity to personally query Slade as to his reasons for that at the next State Republican Convention. The old Snake said, “Jesse did it the wrong way!” attempting to attribute this particular instance of his life-long opposition to religious liberty to some ”procedural” complaint (which he could not name). When the chips were down, Jesse was a stalwart, Slade was always on the other side.
I remember another “Helms Amendment” six years later when the year 2000 actually arrived.
29 GOP Senators helped defeat it, to help boost corporate profits from trade with Red China.
It was amendment ( 4128 ) to the China Trade Bill (HR-4444) and it said that that the President should urge Red China ‘to cease its forced abortion and forced sterilization policies and practices’ and ‘to cease detention of those who resist abortion or sterilization,’
29 Republicans got rid of that “obstruction.”
John “forced abortion” McCain was chief among them.
“Free Trade” has its price, you see, and apparently slavery and murder is an acceptable part of that price. I’m not sure why they call it “Free,” though.
John McCain is not Pro-Life. Jesse Helms was Pro-Life.
But my most vivid Helms recollection was from the early ’80s. There was, pinned on the wall near her refrigerator, a personal letter from Jesse Helms with a photo and hand-written note of affection and grattitude directly to her… in the kitchen of my heroine and mentor of the time… Dottie Roberts.
The Roberts Ranch was the epicenter of the Snohomish County ”Machias precinct”… a short drive from the Tom Thumb market in rural Lake Stevens. I remember, at one time, piles of Platforms from all 39 Counties stacked on every available surface… all night meetings and cigarette smoke… ad hoc conservative “summits”… I could drive there today out of sheer nostalgia. Dottie had helped defeat the ERA and had long fought the Abortion Advocacy machine that is the Mainstream Republicans of Washington.
So this morning when I saw the note from Billy Graham, I began looking on the Internet for a photo of Dottie with Jesse, but, you know, so many of our Pro-Life pioneers laid the foundations long before digital photography or the internet… Jesse and Dottie and Phyllis…
Helms’ spirit wrestled free of his worn out body, today, at the age of 86…
Dottie can’t be that young anymore. I hope I can get the time to visit her in Cawker City one of these days.
And I absolutely pledge before he is 186, to have lunch with Jesse. I didn’t know him. Dottie did.
Here’s what Billy had to say:
Jesse Helms, my friend and long-time senator from my home state of North Carolina, was a man of consistent conviction to conservative ideals and courage to faithfully serve God and country based on principle, not popularity or politics.
In the tradition of Presidents Jefferson, Adams and Monroe — who also passed on July 4th — it is fitting that such a patriot who fought for free markets and free people would die on Independence Day. As we celebrate the birth of our nation, I thank God for the blessings we enjoy, which Senator Helms worked so hard to preserve.
Over three decades in the United States Congress, Senator Helms was a loyal and effective leader on behalf of our State, with whom I connected during times of national crisis. He was the first person to call me when President Reagan was shot, even before it was reported as news.
Senator Helm’s wife, Dot; their three children; and seven grandchildren are in my thoughts and prayers as they honor his legendary life and extraordinary legacy.
Doug,
Thanks for posting the photo of Dottie Roberts. I have not seen her since she moved to Cawker City, though we talk every year or two and email a few times a year. I miss her and I miss her meetings.
Jesse Helms will always be remembered as stalwart and a fighter. He stood firm for Godly principles. I will miss him, and I regret he is the last of the breed.
Wasn’t Helms also an unrepentant racist?
Is that really the worst crime in the world if he was?
Now, I don’t like racists, but I have met many of them in my time (usually from the older generations) who were racists but were admirable in other ways.
Again, I see racism as a negative trait but then no one is perfect. I don’t see racism in the way I do a murderer, a rapist, a child abuser etc.
That is unless you act out your racism to harm others like the KKK does.
Helms was never in the KKK. But there is a guy in the Senate who was a member of the KKK. And he is a
Democrat and he holds a leadership position with them.
Robert Byrd!
So, give the demonization of Helms a rest. The guy is dead okay!
I should say I don’t generally like racists and I do see it as a negative trait but I have met people I have liked who were unfortunately racists but had other admirable qualities.
I don’t like smoking either. With all the information we have on what it does to ones lungs I don’t understand why people would do such a thing. Now a cigar once in a while, I don’t believe that does much harm. But like a pack a day smoker, they smell of smoke whenever you are around them even if they are not smoking at that time.
But, I known smokers who I have liked.
What makes me mad is that Obama can say that he doesn’t like Rev. Wright’s racism but sees other admirably qualities in him (I don’t but that is what Obama says) but we can’t like people despite some racist attitudes they might have?
That said, I do not know if Helms was racist. Didn’t know the guy personally but I do know how the hateful Left works with their Demonization Propaganda. Just because the Left says it, that doesn’t make it so.
For the left anyone who doesn’t agree with them is a racist.
Ed (at 2),
What makes you say he was a racist?
This article and links provide an overview of his racist attitudes.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/erik-ose/jesse-helms-shameful-lega_b_111791.html
It comes from a liberal news source with little credibility.
Ed,
You can’t substantiate a nasty attack on someone simply by linking to someone else making the same baseless attack.
Your link is to a series of false slurs of Helms by Erik Ose, who, to prove his point, in turn, links to a number of sites that do exactly what he and you are doing, name calling.
And, in fact, this is the worst sort of name calling.
Jesse Helms is being called a racist because he fought racism. He fought racist quotas by government and the anti-white racism that drives it.
He ran poliltical ads against opponents who championed anti-white discrimination and they called HIM what they were. He was called a “homophobe” because he opposed gay rights.
You’re not a racist, are you, Ed? Or a Christophobe?
You know what bugs me about the term “gay rights”?
Gays have always had rights. They have had the same rights as the rest of us.
If they were harmed, they could go to the police like you and me. They could write up contracts that would allow for the transfer of wealth to their “partner” in case of death. They could even marry though I don’t know why they would want to since the definition of marriage is a union between one adult male and one adult female.
The only “right” they didn’t have was the “right” to suppress criticism about their lifestyle.
It has gotten so bad now that people want to ban the Bible since it criticizes the gay lifestyle.
Think I am making this up?
Check out this article:
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=31080
Steve,
You nailed it.
This whole thing has to do with shame and not rights — or, the right to sin without shame.
There is a lawsuit against Zondervan and Thomas Nelson for this very thing: publishing passages that condemn homosexuals. This causes them to look bad in other peoples’ eyes, thus violating their “constitutional right” to live free from hatred and violence.
http://www.woodtv.com/Global/story.asp?s=8644595
Whenever anyone tells you we have a “living, breathing Constitution,” this is what they are talking about: evolving the Constitution to accommodate the right to sin. If there is a constitutional right to practice sin without shame, don’t you think our Founding Fathers would have mentioned this over two hundred years ago?
The problem is that whiners are looking to the Constitution for their rights and the courts are more than happy to modify the document, or the interpretation thereof, to meet their whims. On the other hand, according to our Founding Fathers, the Constitution does not grant rights, it protects our God-given rights.
It is ironic, the document we hold to protect our God-given rights has evolved into a document that implicitly guarantees rights to God-forbidden activities.
God save our nation.