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California may be a big state, but we still only get two statues in the Capitol building’s Statuary Hall.  And now one of them is being swapped out:

After 78 years of standing in the Capitol, Thomas Starr King is about to be ousted by a better known Californian — Ronald Reagan.

….”Those of who us who love Thomas Starr King and know about his life are really sorry to see him go,” said the Rev. Roger Fritts, senior minister of Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist Church in Bethesda, Md.

….Rep. Ken Calvert (R-Corona) launched a campaign nearly five years ago, shortly after Reagan’s death, to replace the statue of King, described as “the orator who saved the nation,” with one of “The Great Communicator.”

Well.  My mother attended Thomas Starr King Middle School in Los Angeles, so we take this personally around here.  I guess Unitarians just don’t have the clout they used to.

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