Historians say John Kelly has the Civil War wrong
John Kelly
Washington (CNN) White House press secretary Sarah Sanders on Tuesday defended White House chief of staff  John Kelly   after his praise of Robert E. Lee as an "honorable man" and comments that the Civil War began because of "the lack of an ability to compromise."
 Kelly 's comments  made during an interview with Fox News' Laura Ingraham  re-ignited a political firestorm sparked earlier this year about whether Confederate generals should still be venerated with statues in American cities.
A number of historians and journalists were sharply critical of  Kelly 's comments and Sanders' defense  accusing the chief of staff of misunderstanding the key issue over which the Civil War began.
"I think  Kelly 's comments marginalize the central issue of the war  which was the expansion of slavery " Edna Greene Medford  a professor of history at Howard University  told CNN. "Absolutely  there were differences over the expansion of that institution which led to secession and secession led to war  but to conclude that it's about people not being able to compromise  it's just too simplistic."
The debate over Civil War history is long-simmering but has reached new heights during the Trump administration. That heightening and  Kelly 's comments come at a time during which President Donald Trump has been scrutinized for his response to racial acrimony.
Some critics drew parallels between  Kelly 's comments to Ingraham and Trump's inciting remarks earlier this year in which he blamed both sides for the deadly violence in Charlottesville  Virginia  that left one counter protester dead after a car crashed into a crowd.
Washington (CNN) White House press secretary Sarah Sanders on Tuesday defended White House chief of staff  [TGT]   after [TGT] praise of Robert E. Lee as an "honorable man" and comments that the Civil War began because of "the lack of an ability to compromise."
 Kelly 's comments  made during an interview with Fox News' Laura Ingraham  re-ignited a political firestorm sparked earlier this year about whether Confederate generals should still be venerated with statues in American cities.
A number of historians and journalists were sharply critical of  [TGT] 's comments and Sanders' defense  accusing the chief of staff of misunderstanding the key issue over which the Civil War began.
"I think  [TGT] 's comments marginalize the central issue of the war  which was the expansion of slavery " Edna Greene Medford  a professor of history at Howard University  told CNN. "Absolutely  there were differences over the expansion of that institution which led to secession and secession led to war  but to conclude that it's about people not being able to compromise  it's just too simplistic."
The debate over Civil War history is long-simmering but has reached new heights during the Trump administration. That heightening and  [TGT] 's comments come at a time during which President Donald Trump has been scrutinized for his response to racial acrimony.
Some critics drew parallels between  [TGT] 's comments to Ingraham and Trump's inciting remarks earlier this year in which he blamed both sides for the deadly violence in Charlottesville  Virginia  that left one counter protester dead after a car crashed into a crowd.