'You are complicit': GOP shamed as MI Republican spouts 'disgusting' racism on House floor

Michigan House Democrats on Tuesday came out in support of a resolution put forth by state Rep. Sharon MacDonell (D-Troy) aiming to censure Rep. Josh Schriver (R-Oxford) for “racist statements” made on the House Floor earlier this month.

Schriver, who was stripped of his staff, funds and committee assignment by former House Speaker Joe Tate (D-Detroit) last year for promoting the racist Great Replacement Theory on social media, spoke out on a set of policies intended to crack down on sanctuary cities and counties during the chamber’s May 1 session.

In his testimony, Schriver quoted former Presidential Advisor Patrick Buchanan’s book, “The Death of the West”, telling fellow lawmakers “The chasm in our country is not one of income, ideology or faith, but of ethnicity and loyalty.”

“Illegal aliens undermine our national sovereignty. The largest population transfer in history is coming from all the races in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and they are not acclimating, they are not melting and they are not reforming to the American way of life,” Schriver said. “This is something that needs to be addressed.”

MacDonell told reporters on Tuesday that while it’s not surprising to hear Schriver oppose sanctuary cities, his testimony had focused on criticizing people rather than policy.

“Schriver blamed naturalized citizens and their descendants for America’s ills…I think any rational person can agree that it’s one thing to have strong opinions on immigration policy in Michigan. It’s fully another thing to claim that all immigrants, including naturalized citizens, are bad people. Even worse to claim that all people of certain ethnicity that he doesn’t like, or a certain national origin that Schriver doesn’t like, are bad people,” MacDonell said.

House Minority Leader Ranjeev Puri (D-Canton), whose parents immigrated to the U.S. from India, called Schriver’s comments “deliberate, disgusting, dangerous and disgraceful.”

“They were an attack on families like mine, and an attack on the very spirit of inclusion and the progress that our state is making. His remarks were rooted in ignorance and prejudice and they do not reflect the values of House Democrats or the values of the Michigan people,” Puri said.

“Rep. Schriver also specifically singled out countries whose people are overwhelmingly Black, brown and non-white, not once mentioning European nations or white immigrants. That’s not a coincidence. That’s racism, plain and simple. He didn’t just invoke racist tropes, he leaned into the dangerous Great Replacement Theory suggesting that immigrants of color are here to erase American identity. That’s not policy, that’s paranoia rooted in white supremacy,” Puri said.

He also raised concerns that members of the Republican Caucus hadn’t spoken out against Schriver’s remarks, calling on House Speaker Matt Hall (R-Richland Township) and other Republicans to denounce Schriver’s “hateful rhetoric.”

“When white supremacy echoes in the chambers and you say nothing, you’re not neutral, you are complicit,” Puri said.

When asked about Schriver’s remarks at a press conference earlier on Tuesday, Hall said he hadn’t seen Schriver’s comments, before noting that Schriver had been reelected by his constituents.

Video of House Session shows Hall on the House floor as Schriver requests permission to testify on the bills, though he is not visible on video when Schriver’s speech concludes.

“What I really appreciate about representative Shriver is that he’s, you see a difference, I think, between him last year and this year and, you know, we gave him his staff back… what I’m doing is I’ve got him as a member of our caucus, and you know what I’ve tried to do is put him in positions to succeed, and he’s on some of these oversight subcommittees. I think he’s doing a very good job there. And you see him really voting with our caucus on a lot of issues,” Hall said.

“I appreciate how he’s working with our members as a team, and even though we might have differences at times in how we talk and how we communicate, and I’ve expressed some of those in the past where him and I disagreed,” Hall said, with the Speaker previously stating that Schriver’s resolution calling on the United States Supreme Court to overturn Obergefell V. Hodges, which requires all states to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, would not move forward.

When asked if Schriver’s far-right views were shaping legislation coming from the House Republican Caucus, Hall pointed to Schriver’s vote in support of bipartisan policies like legislation to create a Public Safety Trust Fund to support local law enforcement and community violence intervention initiatives.

Schriver’s office did not respond to a request for comment on the proposed resolution.