GOP's Scott Perry blasted for invoking Frederick Douglass and Civil War reconstruction

Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA) was among those who were central to the effort by Republicans to overthrow the 2020 election and the insurrection that followed, the House Select Committee revealed in its report.

As WHYY explained this week in a report, Perry introduced Trump to lawyer Jeffrey Clark, who the former president considered appointing to be the acting attorney general because he supported the fake election plot.

“Rep. Perry followed up and says, ‘Mark, you should call Jeff. I just got off the phone with him and he explained to me why the principal deputy won’t work, especially with the FBI. They will view it as not having the authority to enforce what needs to be done,’” Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) explained.

Former Trump White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson testified under oath that Perry was among those who sought a pardon before Trump left office. Perry denies it, but he refuses to comply with a subpoena and make the comment under oath.

When Perry got up to nominate Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL), he invoked Frederick Douglass, the legendary abolitionist and preacher who was enslaved on a Maryland plantation and escaped to Philadelphia.

It harkens back to a 2018 editorial in the New York Times by Yale historian David W. Blight, who penned the biography “Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom.”

"In the same way that Abraham Lincoln has become 'everybody’s grandfather,' in the words of the historian David Donald, the one American figure who could be adopted by every part of the political spectrum, Douglass is also appropriated broadly, especially by the American right," wrote Blight.

The Nation's Elie Mystal was disgusted Perry invoked Douglass calling him a "Republican."

"These white guys who insist that this is important are really among the worst people available," said Mystal.

Law Professor Anthony Michael Kreis similarly mocked Perry's claim by saying that he was "out here performing an Annie reprise while giving us a poor lecture on Reconstruction."

Huffington Post reporter Nathalie Baptiste issued the fake warning, "I believe bringing up Frederick Douglass on the House floor counts as CRT. Sorry, I don't make the rules."

ESPN culture writer Britni Danielle also noted how "awful" the speeches from the GOP were.

"We've reached the Frederick Douglass was a Republican, so let's nominate this random Black congressman who has a 'big mind, who's big in stature' to be Speaker of the House. I bet most of these Republicans voting for Byron Donalds just met him today."

Immigrants rights activist Juan Escalante posted that it was only after Perry "recit[ed] hyper racist and fear-mongering talking points about migrants seeking asylum" that he "names Frederick Douglass."