I have frequently seen conservative Republicans with no sense of irony use what the parties were 100+ years ago to tell Democrats and liberals they can’t criticize the Republican party on civil rights. What constructive things has the Republican party done for African-Americans since President Eisenhower left office? I won’t say LBJ was enlightened on race but he was far more forward thinking and acting as a president than any of his Republican successors were. That’s the thing though. As the Democratic party has become the party of civil rights, the Republican Party has less and less resembled the party of Lincoln.