But Carlson, along with other congressional Republican and conservatives Wednesday, decried the senators’ push to strip Columbus Day of its status, accusing the pair of succumbing to the current moment in history instead of sticking up for a federal holiday that dates back to the 1930s — even as more places have opted out of honoring the explorer.
“They want to delete it from the national calendar,” Carlson said. He added later, “They’re hoping to quietly eliminate Columbus Day and then move on to the next item on the rioters’ list of demands.”
In a joint news release announcing the amendment, Johnson explained that the measure is not due to Columbus’s oppression of indigenous people but rather the cost of adding another federal holiday on the calendar. They pointed to an NPR report estimating that the cost of a federal holiday was than $600 million for paid time off for federal employees. The Wisconsin senator described the amendment to cut out Columbus Day as a way to “not put us further in debt.”
“We support celebrating emancipation with a federal holiday but believe we should eliminate a current holiday in exchange,” Johnson said in a statement. “We chose Columbus Day as a holiday that is lightly celebrated, and least disruptive to Americans’ schedules.”
Lankford, who touted Juneteenth as “a huge step” in becoming a more perfect union, echoed his co-sponsor, saying that leaders should remain “cognizant of the impact the existing 10 federal holidays have on federal services and local businesses.”
“We can reduce these impacts by replacing Columbus Day as a federal holiday with Juneteenth, America’s second independence day,” said the Oklahoma senator.
The proposal was met with much skepticism from Sen. John Cornyn (R-Tex.), co-sponsor of the Senate’s Juneteenth bill. In an interview with the Hill, Cornyn said cutting out Columbus Day for Juneteenth “dilutes the message we’re trying to send, which is one of being respectful and honoring and remembering our history.”
“I think that’s problematic,” the Texas senator said of the amendment. “We’re working through all those things right now we just don’t have an answer right this second.”
Spokespeople for Johnson, Lankford and Cornyn did not immediately return messages left by The Washington Post late Wednesday.
The push against Columbus Day has been unfolding for years. In 2019, more than 100 cities and the District had renamed the October federal holiday to Indigenous Peoples’ Day to honor the rich history and reclaiming Native history. Just 21 states honor Columbus Day as a paid holiday compared to Juneteenth, which is celebrated by 47 states and the District.
Johnson and Lankford noted that the amendment follows a similar decision against Columbus Day in Franklin County, Ohio, last month. The county, which includes Columbus, Ohio, announced it was dropping the holiday in favor of Juneteenth for all of its roughly 1,400 county employees starting in 2021, according to the Columbus Dispatch.
Conservatives on social media offered up a mix of criticism and bewilderment over Johnson and Lankford’s proposed swap.
“I look forward to donating to any Republican who primaries Ron Johnson or James Lankford,” tweeted conservative podcast host Michael Knowles. “Do whatever you want with Juneteenth, but not at the expense of Columbus Day!”
Save Columbus Day!!!
— Jim Banks (@RepJimBanks) July 2, 2020
On Fox News, Carlson suggested to his prime-time audience that the “suddenly woke” Republican senators would explore “other acts of revolution and cultural desecration” if the Columbus Day amendment were to pass.
“It all depends that you let them know that you noticed they’re trying to cancel Columbus Day,” he said. “If you don’t say anything about it, there’s no telling what Johnson and Lankford might do next.”
Johnson took to Twitter late Wednesday to respond to the criticism, emphasizing that his amendment to drop Columbus Day should not be compared to that of the toppled statues.
“It is not deprecating Christopher Columbus’ achievements or expressing any value judgment regarding his place in history,” Johnson tweeted. “I do not support efforts to erase America’s rich history — not the good, the bad, or the ugly.”
