President Trump’s pick to be a federal district judge in Alabama defended the early Ku Klux Klan on a University of Alabama fan online message board, according to a report from Slate.
“Heaven forbid we let the facts get in the way of your righteous indignation, but Forrest, when he decommissioned his men, told them to make peace with the men they had fought and live as good citizens of the United States,” Brett Talley wrote on TideFans.com, using his online alias “BamainBoston.”
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“It was only after the perceived depredations of the Union army during reconstruction that Forrest joined (it is highly unlikely that he founded or acted as the Grand Wizard) the first KKK, which was entirely different than the KKK of the early 19th Century,” he said.
“When the Klan turned to racial violence, he distanced himself from the organization as he had long supported the reconciliation of the races. In fact, he often spoke to black organizations,” he wrote.
BuzzFeed first reported that Talley used the pen name “BamainBoston” online.
Slate found that Talley often commented on other controversial issues such as abortion, government overreach, race and Southern heritage.
Talley has been the subject of scrutiny as of late, with a New York Times report saying he failed to disclose he was married to Ann Donaldson, the chief of staff to the White House counsel.
The Daily Beast obtained a Senate Judiciary Committee questionnaire, which included Talley as saying he was part of the Tuscaloosa Paranormal Research Group between 2009 and 2010.
Talley was the fourth of Trump’s judicial nominees to be deemed unqualified by the American Bar Association.
The Senate could vote on his nomination as early as Monday.