Members of the Sons of Confederate Veterans are probably whistling Dixie in more ways than one if they really expect the Florida Legislature to authorize a specialty license tag depicting the rebel battle flag. Considering that the Senate, at least, has adult supervision, it is doubtful that the Legislature would approve something so flagrantly divisive.
But opponents should not let down their guard. Belying his press office's earlier statement that he was "adamantly" against it, Gov. Jeb Bush refused to say whether he'd veto such legislation.
"I don't know," he said. "We'll have to see." He went on to say, "I'm not going to buy one, I know that."
That didn't sound like the same person who two years ago moved a Confederate flag from a place of prominence outside the Capitol to a more appropriate spot in a museum. He did that to spare Florida the political grief that Confederate flag issues brought to Georgia and South Carolina. This time, he wants legislators to take the heat. It is not his finest hour.
It should not be necessary to recite the reasons why Florida should not flaunt the rebel flag, but apparently some people still don't get it. Where the Sons of Confederate Veterans claim to see only a prideful heritage, many others perceive a garish reminder of slavery and of the racist claptrap, festering even to this day, that slavers parroted to rationalize their selfishness and cruelty. To see the rebel flag on a Florida license plate would offend African-Americans in much the same way as a swastika would offend Jews.
This regrettable proposal is, however, a predictable consequence of the mistake the Legislature and Bush made when they agreed to a blatantly political message - "Choose Life" - on a specialty tag. The governor can hardly come out against a different political message without putting the state in the constitutionally untenable position of choosing which political expressions deserve official favor. The simple and proper solution is to keep them off license plates altogether.
The judiciary, where a suit against the Choose Life plate is still pending, no doubt will be watching with great interest to see what becomes of the Confederate battle flag.
