Two Republican White House hopefuls dodge Confederate flag issue

Republican U.S. presidential candidates Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum, sidestepping a divisive issue reignited by the church massacre in Charleston, refused on Sunday to say whether South Carolina should remove the Confederate flag from its State House grounds.

Huckabee and Santorum, who draw support from their party's conservative wing, said it is up to the state to decide. They made their comments a day after 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney called for the flag's removal, labeling it "a symbol of racial hatred" to many people.

"If the state government of South Carolina wishes to address an issue in their state, that's fine," Mike Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor, told NBC's "Meet the Press" program.

"But for those of us running for president, everyone's being baited with this question as if somehow that has anything to do whatsoever with running for president. And my position is: it most certainly does not."

Santorum, a former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania, said on ABC's "This Week" program, "I'm not a South Carolinian."

"I don't think the federal government or federal candidates should be making decisions on everything and opining on everything. This is a decision that needs to be made here in South Carolina," added Santorum.

Santorum was among those who attended a memorial service on Sunday at the Charleston church where nine black people were killed by a gunman authorities have identified as a 21-year-old white man.

Hmm. Huckabee was born and raised in a state that was a member of the Confederacy, and he was the governor there.

Plus, Huckabee is a Southern Baptist preacher, and the Southern Baptist Convention came in existence for the purpose of supporting slavery.

Gee, I wonder why Huckabee doesn't want to talk about the Confederate flag.