Head of GOP complains that calling out racism 'is hurting our country'

The chair of the Republican National Committee, Ronna McDaniel, complained on Thursday that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) was being unnecessarily “divisive” by calling out racism within the Republican Party.

The day before, Ocasio-Cortez took House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to task for the party’s continued support of members such as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) who have expressed white supremacist ideas.

McDaniel told Fox News, “The Republican Party has no place for white supremacists, that is very clear. We have made that very clear.”

Despite that claim, Greene, who won election to the House in November, has been assigned to the House Education and Labor Committee.

But McDaniel pivoted to calling out Ocasio-Cortez, saying, “You are not helping take down the temperature in this country.”

McDaniel was a prominent supporter and defender of Donald Trump, who espouses white supremacist ideas and tropes and who surrounded himself with likeminded people in his administration.

McDaniel also complained that the congresswoman “hasn’t had her Twitter account suspended,” despite her purportedly “divisive” rhetoric.

But unlike Trump, Ocasio-Cortez has not used her Twitter account to promote election disinformation and to urge political violence, activity that finally got Trump was banned for life from the service.

From the Jan. 28 edition of Fox News’ “America Reports”:

RONNA McDANIEL: As our country is divided, like we’ve never been before, rhetoric matters. And she hasn’t had her Twitter account suspended, yet her rhetoric is divisive, and it is hurting our country.

 

The Republican Party has no place for white supremacists, that is very clear. We have made that very clear. I would like the Democrat Party to say there’s no place for Louis Farrakhan, or antifa. Let’s say that, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and let’s not call half the country racists and supremacists, that’s not helping our country right now.

 

There are a lot of good, wonderful Republicans who don’t deserve to be called that, and you are not helping take down the temperature in this country. Let’s not ramp things up anymore, let’s start healing the division in this country.

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.