The tea party is stopping change in Congress, Andre Carson said. | AP Photo A top lawmaker in the Congressional Black Caucus says tea partiers on Capitol Hill would like to see African Americans hanging from trees and accuses the movement of wishing for a return to the Jim Crow era.
Rep. Andre Carson, a Democrat from Indiana who serves as the CBCs chief vote counter, said at a CBC event in Miami that some in Congress would love to see us as second-class citizens and some of them in Congress right now of this tea party movement would love to see you and me
hanging on a tree.
Carson also said the tea party is stopping change in Congress, likening it to the effort that were seeing of Jim Crow.
The explosive comments, caught on tape, were uploaded on the internet Tuesday, and Carsons office stood by the remarks. Jason Tomcsi, Carsons spokesman, said the comment was in response to frustration voiced by many in Miami and in his home district in Indianapolis regarding Congress inability to bolster the economy. Tomcsi, in an email, wrote that the congressman used strong language because the Tea Party agenda jeopardizes our most vulnerable and leaves them without the ability to improve their economic standing.
The Tea Party is protecting its millionaire and oil company friends while gutting critical services that they know protect the livelihood of African-Americans, as well as Latinos and other disadvantaged minorities, Tomcsi wrote. We are talking about child nutrition, job creation, job training, housing assistance, and Head Start, and that is just the beginning. A child without basic nutrition, secure housing, and quality education has no real chance at a meaningful and productive life.
Carson is hardly the first lawmaker to use heated rhetoric. Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) yelled you lie as President Barack Obama was addressing Congress. Rep. Randy Neugebauer (R-Texas) yelled baby killer at former Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) as abortion was being discussed during the health care debate.
Carson, who represents Indianapolis, is the second Muslim to ever serve in Congress. He has been in office since 2008, and took the seat that was held by his late grandmother Rep. Julia Carson (D-Ind.).