False Quotes: The GOP Candidate version
A Republican gubernatorial candidate in Arizona said this week that he mistakenly misquoted former President Abraham Lincoln on class warfare to criticize President Barack Obama because the quotes “sounded good.”
“You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich,” State Sen. Al Melvin (R) wrote on Twitter last week. “You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.”
“You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred,” another tweet said. “POTUS Obama needs to learn from these words.”
Although Melvin attributed both quotes to the 16th president, there is no record of him actually saying those words.
“I can tell you that these quotes are spurious,” Arizona State University history professor Brooks Simpson told Capitol Media Services. “They do not appear in Lincoln’s writings or in his recollected words.”
For his part, Melvin said that the quotes came from a GOP newsletter and he used them because they “sounded good.”
Because who cares if you’re telling the truth when you can make up some shit which sounds good?
More: GOP Lawmaker Attacks Obama With False Lincoln Quotes That ‘Sounded Good’