Vice President Mike Pence said Tuesday that states should decide whether to remove their Confederate statues from the U.S. Capitol, and said he believes more monuments should be built to celebrate those who have helped the U.S. progress.
“I hold the view that it’s important that we remember our past and build on the progress that we’ve made,” Pence told Fox News. “[In] the United States Capitol, every state is able to donate two statues to commemorate citizens they want to be remembered in the heart of our government. States can make those decisions.”
“What we have to walk away from is the desire by some to erase parts of our history just in the name of some contemporary political cause,” he said.
Following the violence in Charlottesville, Va., last week, state and local officials have begun calling for Confederate statues to be removed, and some state and local governments have taken down monuments.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., called for House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., to work with Democrats in removing Confederate monuments from the U.S. Capitol. But each state chooses which statues to send to the Capitol.
During his interview with Fox News, Pence said he believes removal of statues should be a “local decision,” but said the nation should be celebrating the “progress” the U.S. has made.
“We ought to remember our history, but we also ought to celebrate the progress we’ve made since that history,” Pence said.
The vice president also called for the building of additional monuments, saying he’s “someone who believes in more monuments, not less monuments.”
“Rather than tearing down monuments that have graced our cities all across this country for years, we ought to be building more monuments. We ought to be celebrating the men and women who have helped our nation move toward a more perfect union and tell the whole story of America,” he said.
