GOP lawmaker says he ‘misspoke’ when he referred to Black Americans as ‘colored people’

A Republican member of Congress from Arizona said he “misspoke” Thursday night when he referred to Black Americans serving in the military as “colored people” during a debate on passing the Department of Defense’s annual budget.

Rep. Eli Crane (R-AZ) made the comment on the House floor as he sought to gain support from fellow lawmakers on his amendment to the defense spending bill that would “prohibit the Department of Defense from making participation in training or support for certain race-based concepts a requirement for hiring, promotion, or retention of individuals.”

“My amendment has nothing to do with whether or not colored people or Black people or anybody can serve,” Crane said. “It has nothing to do with any of that stuff.”

Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-OH), a former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, immediately reacted to Crane’s use of “colored people,” an offensive term used to describe Black people. Beatty asked for Crane’s comments to be stricken from the record.

“I find it offensive and very inappropriate,” Beatty said on the House floor. “I am asking for unanimous consent to take down the words of referring to me or any of my colleagues as colored people.”

Crane later addressed his comments in a statement reported by NBC News.

“In a heated floor debate on my amendment that would prohibit discrimination on the color of one’s skin in the Armed Forces, I misspoke,” Crane said in the statement. “Every one of us is made in the image of God and created equal.”

Democrats weren’t buying his explanation.

“You don’t just ACCIDENTALLY mispeak a derogatory phrase into the Congressional record unless you’re SO used to uttering that phrase it just pops out,” Rep. Hillary Scholten (D-MI) tweeted. “The remainder of Crane’s comments also bely the truth of his sentiments.”

Crane’s amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act ultimately passed on a mostly party-line vote. Just one Democrat, Rep. Jared Golden of Maine, joined 213 Republicans in voting in favor of the amendment.

It was one of a number of Republican amendments to the annual defense funding bill that targeted diversity in the military.

An amendment from Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) would “eliminate any offices of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion along with the personnel in said offices within the offices of the Armed Forces and Department of Defense.” It passed on a narrow party-line vote of 214-213.

An amendment from Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) would “prohibit federal funds from being used to establish a position within the Department of Defense for anything similar to Chief Diversity Officers or Senior Advisors for Diversity and Inclusion.” That amendment passed on a party-line vote of 217-212.

Yet another Republican amendment, from Rep. Bob Good of Virginia, sought to block the military from renaming bases that bear the name of Confederate soldiers. That amendment failed; 177 Republicans voted for it.

The amendments are all part of a broader GOP campaign against efforts in the military, business community, and education system to prioritize diversity and inclusivity.

Democrats on the House Armed Services Committee said in a joint statement that the GOP changes to the bill have turned it into “an ode to bigotry and ignorance.”

Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA) said the bill has “become a Frankenstein’s monster of far-right bigotry laced with racism and fear mongering.”

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.