"States' rights" was a Democrat position and part of what led up to the civil war. The Republican Party was formed specifically in opposition to slavery and to keep the Union together.

This is all true. The southeast used to be solid DINO territory, with luminaries like George Wallace howling about "states rights", while promoting segregation. I remember Mike Huckabee talking about his youth, when you could put all the Republicans in town in one house living room, because the GOP was associated with "the war of northern aggression". The Voting Rights Act and the Civil Rights Act, of the 60s were passed with stronger GOP support than Dem.

Then Nixon saw how well Wallace did in 68, and embarked on his "southern strategy". The GOP has increasingly embraced racism ever since. Reagan put the shift into high gear, as southern Dems, styling themselves as "the boll weevil caucus", flocked to the GOP. Moderate Republicans, the sort that used to govern Michigan, have been driven from the party. It was not that many years ago, when Mitt Romney talked about his dad, when Governor of Michigan, joining in civil rights marches, and being flamed by the "new" GOP.

Steve