It made me sick to watch this yesterday. This seemed more like a political forum than a funeral.
Some of the one liners we really funny. Some of the political shots were direct. Yet I felt like I was watching a late show monologue and at times forgot there was a woman in a casket hidden beneath flowers, speeches and applause.
Former President Carter said, "The struggle for equal rights is not over. We only have to recall the color of the faces of those in Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi, those who were most devastated by Katrina, to know that there are not yet equal opportunities for all Americans." The crowd roared its approval.
And in a reference to President Bush's much-criticized NSA surveillance program, Carter brought up the "secret government wiretapping" of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Many years ago. Many in the crowd stood to applaud Carter obviously forgetting that it was Bobby Kennedy that tapped the calls of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
The Rev. Joseph Lowery, a civil rights leader who is now 85 years old, drew cheers when he criticized the U.S.-led war in Iraq. I wonder if he covers that at every funeral?
Former President Bill Clinton and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton traveled to the funeral with the Bushes on Air Force One. It must have been a long ride back.
Limited were remarks to the life and legacy of Mrs. King. Instead most chose to use Mrs. King's funeral to send a political message to President Bush.
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