General Wesley Clark on Don Siegelman at the Alabama JJ Dinner (Excerpts)

November 30, 2007 | Commentary at Left in Alabama

Introduction by Ron Sparks

Thank you. It's great to be here with you in Alabama.

We're both Southern states. We both like football. Now there's a rumor going around ... You know, we've been loaning you, over the years, a lot of football coaches down here. You know, the Bear came from Fordyce, Arkansas -- and we never got him back.

And now, some of y'all saying "Roll Tide" -- you might be really happy 'cause the rumor is we might get a guy from Camden back.

I can't announce that. I mean I don't know. But we're really excited about it in Arkansas.

I do feel... It's really great to be here with you. I've got so many friends here and so many good people.

First time I came to Alabama, I was at the ... it was 1993 ... and I was at Montgomery at Maxwell Air Force Base at the Air Command Staff College and I had to take a two week training course that they give to 2 star generals. And so, I was down for the course and my wife was with me and we had nothing to do on Saturday and so we thought, "Well, let's just take a look.... let's just drive around Montgomery. We've never been here before."

So we ended up.... and there was the State Capitol building. We said, "It'll be really interesting to see the State Capitol", so we went up and.... "Well, it's probably going to be locked." ...Saturday morning about 10 or 11 o'clock. We get in there and... uh... it's kind of dark, but it's unlocked.

And I thought, "This is my kind of state. This is the people's house. So we get in and there's a big tall guy pacing in the.. foyer. Back and forth. And he bumped into us. And uh... I introduced myself, and he said, Well, hello. My name is... I'm Jim Folsom, I'm the Governor. [laughter]

I thought, "This IS my kind of state!" [laughter]

This is a state that's about people. And I'm just thrilled to be here.

One of the people who most represents Alabama to me is a guy named Don Siegelman.

[applause]

I happen to believe Don Siegelman was not only a great governor, but I believe he is a great American, and I believe he's an honest man, and I believe he's been unjustly confined.

Won't you stand up and recognize Gov. Don Siegelman? [standing applause]

I wish he could hear your applause but maybe he will. Thank you ladies and gentlemen.

I want to thank especially Congressman Artur Davis [applause] for your work, sir in getting Don Siegelman's case looked at in the highest levels of government. It needs to be.

But you know, for all our blessings we are a nation at war. And not only at war abroad, but at war at home. There's been a systematic campaign that's gone on for 20 years to overturn the ideas and the principles, the beliefs, the patterns, the hopes, the opportunities that we've labored so hard to put in place in this country.

I know about those. I was 12 years old in Little Rock, Arkansas when we went through the first desegregation crisis. I was one of those young people who understood, intrinsically that there's a difference between right and wrong, that people are equal, they have to be treated fairly, that you have to have respect, you have to have justice in your life.

We're seeing a 20 year campaign to polarize and partisanize this country and take away the basic fundamentals that we fought so hard to put in place. It's true. {applause} I mean it's happening right here, right now. It's this prosecuting attorney's scandal.

It's the use of executive power to put in wiretaps and other spying on the American peple to take away our fundamental liberties.

It's the wholesale politicization of the Department of Justice, it's a stench of corruption that has run from the White House, through Jack Abramoff and I'm hearing rumors of it right here, in this state of Alabama, and we've got to get rid of it in American politics.