The former Chair of the Republican Party expresses overtly what many saw when the Tennessee Legislature expelled two young black men.
Michael Steele nails it again.
The former Chair of the Republican Party, Michael Steele, did not mince his words. He said out loud what most know about the Republican Legislature in Tennessee and likely in most Red States.
Steele made it clear that the three Democrats did nothing that merited expulsion. But that, the two young, articulate black men were expelled while their complicit white woman was not sent a distinct message they wanted to be heard around the United States.
“As we move beyond this moment, realize we have to appreciate what the Republicans did in the first instance, but also understand why they did it,” Michael Steele said. “This was their way of saying; you can’t get bigger than we want you to be. You can’t represent your people unless you do it the way we want you to represent it. Now we understand, you know, as citizens, you know, if you break the rules, okay, there’s a price to pay, but it’s not expulsion. And yet Republicans wanted to make a point.”
Steele would get into what many know but rarely say out loud.
“They [Republicans] wanted to send a message,” Steele said. “They wanted to make sure he understood that we don’t accept uppity black men in this chamber. You need to understand your place in the role. We get to decide your behavior, whether it’s outside or inside the bounds. We don’t care who sent you here. Who! We get to decide whether you stay or go. And I find it interesting now that you know, the speaker of the House making it very clear, he can come back down. If he plays by the rules, he gets to stay. We hope he learned a lesson. And that’s the message. And what this community just said is, no, you don’t understand. This is the lesson you need to learn.”
Please listen to the entire clip. Michael Steele could not have been more passionate and on point.
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