On Monday, CNN's congressional reporter Manu Raju broke down the impact of the racist speech by Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) at former President Donald Trump's rally in Minden, Nevada over the weekend.
During that rally, Tuberville appeared to link criminality with Black people, saying, "[Democrats] want crime because they want to take over what you've got. They want to control what you have. They want reparations because they think the people who do the crime are owed that. Bullshit! They are not owed that."
"How is the Republican leadership responding?" asked anchor Wolf Blitzer.
"With silence," said Raju. "There has been no response from top Republicans. Congress is out on recess until after the midterms. Tuberville's office itself has not responded or clarified his remarks at all. I reached out today asking what the senator meant, if he wanted to clarify and talk about exactly what he was referring to. They have so far declined to do so."
But behind the scenes, added Raju, Republicans are taken aback by Tuberville's comments.
"This has caught some Republicans that I have spoken to by surprise," said Raju. "He is not known as someone who rocks the boat. He's a freshman Republican, keeps his head down. So this comment, though, has gotten a lot of attention, both within the Republican Party and outside the Republican Party as well."
Manu Raju says Republicans were surprised by Tommy Tuberville's racist speechwww.youtube.com
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