CHARLESTON, S.C. — House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn said Tuesday that the Democratic Party needs to move past a recent dust-up involving Hillary Rodham Clinton’s comments about civil rights and that he will stick with his vow not to endorse a candidate in the primary.
“I promised then I would stay out of it,” he told reporters during a conference call. “I have no intentions at this time to change my mind.”
Clyburn’s decision to remain neutral comes as a relief to the Clinton campaign. Over the weekend, he had expressed disappointment with Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, for remarks they made about civil rights history and rival candidate Sen. Barack Obama.
Clyburn, South Carolina’s first black congressman since Reconstruction, was key in getting the state the first Democratic presidential primary in the South. An endorsement from him could help sway the critical black vote in South Carolina, where nearly half the 2004 party primary voters were black. The Democratic primary is Jan. 26.
