Sometimes, it's not what you say, but what you don't say that is important.
NBC's Andrea Mitchell spoke of President Reagan's support of the South African apartheid regime, and of Congress' override of his veto to impose economic sanctions on the regime. A similar story was relayed by human rights attorney Gay McDougall, who stated "Americans took a stand against Apartheid and said no to our government, when Ronald Reagan wanted to solidify, you know, U.S. support for Apartheid."
But that is only part of the story, and the part they leave out (intentionally, I believe), is eloquently communicated by Joel Pollack, who is actually from South Africa:
"The ANC [African National Congress] remained banned in the country [S. Africa], but its military wing continued to operate within Southern Africa, with assistance from the Soviet Union. The decision to align with the Soviet Union would later haunt the ANC, as it alienated the United States and Great Britain, which were otherwise inclined to support the anti-apartheid movement (and did so, albeit in limited fashion). While Mandela was in prison, the Soviet-trained leaders of the ANC's army committed human rights abuses in military camps outside the country, and used terror attacks on civilians inside South Africa."
(Hear Joel Pollack's discussion with Mark Levin on the life of Nelson Mandela. An excellent piece, and well worth the time to listen.) (H/T to Right Scoop)
This places the story in a whole different context to that which people like Andrea Mitchell, Gay McDougall and others on the left would want you to believe, especially about someone they so readily despise, like Ronald Reagan.
NBC and ABC Bash Reagan as Pro-Apartheid During Mandela Coverage
By Kyle Drennen | December 6, 2013 | 12:03
Amid the tributes looking back at the life of former South African President Nelson Mandela following his death on Thursday, Friday's NBC Today and ABC's Good Morning America both managed to take shots at Ronald Reagan for not being supportive of Mandela during Apartheid. [Listen to the audio or watch the video after the jump]
On Today, chief foreign affairs correspondent Andrea Mitchell proclaimed: "The U.S. wasn't always on Mandela's side. In the 1980s, President Reagan supported the Apartheid regime, a cold war ally, even as protests broke out on college campuses across America demanding that the U.S. punish the regime....Finally, Congress, including key Republicans, overrode Reagan's veto, imposing the economic sanctions that helped break the Apartheid regime."
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