Mo Brooks lampoons ‘racist’ liberal media on claims of GOP ‘white supremacy’ ahead of Alabama Senate primary
Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Ala., a candidate to replace retiring Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., in Alabama's U.S. Senate race, is pushing back on Democrats and the liberal media over claims that the GOP is the party of "White supremacy."
Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Ala., a candidate to replace retiring Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., in Alabama's U.S. Senate race, pushed back on Democrats and the liberal media over claims the GOP is the party of "White supremacy."
In an interview with Fox News Digital ahead of the state's Tuesday primaries, Brooks accused both of being "racist," argued they were trying to divide the country by skin color, and warned the country would continue heading in the wrong direction if they insisted on perpetuating "racism."
Brooks also blasted the Biden administration's handling of the numerous economic crises facing Americans, arguing he was the right candidate in the race to tackle the nation's problems because of his experience in office and consistency as a conservative.
Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Ala., speaks to Fox News' Brandon Gillespie ahead of the Republican primary in the race to be Alabama's next U.S. senator. (Brandon Gillespie)
"Let me be very clear about what is transpiring. The Democrats and the liberal fake news media, they are racist. They're the ones who are trying to divide us based on an accident of birth: skin pigmentation," Brooks said when asked about attempts by Democrats, leftists and liberal media members to tie Republicans to White supremacy.
Many have recently sought to make the connection between White supremacy and the GOP, including the liberal co-hosts of ABC's "The View," who claimed last week it was the party "that welcomes White supremacists under its tent," and suggested Republican voters were White supremacists.
In April, Boston University professor, and author of the children's book "Antiracist Baby," Ibram X. Kendi called Republicans "the party of White supremacy," while The Los Angeles Times editorial board blamed the party for what it referred to as the "normalization" of "virulent White supremacy."
"I am very concerned that the Democrats and the fake news media on the left continue to try to divide us over these things over which we have no control," Brooks said. "And so, to the extent that the Democrats and the liberals in the news media want to make race an issue in everything that is done, that heightens the contrast between people of different skin pigmentation."
Republican Alabama Senate candidate Katie Britt speaks with Fox News' Brandon Gillespie via Zoom on May 17, 2022. (Brandon Gillespie) (Brandon Gillespie)
"I want us to minimize that, to eliminate that, and look at people as people. So we'll see how it plays out, but what the liberal media and what the Democrats are doing by emphasizing racial disparity is only going to create more and more racism. And that's a bad way to go for our country," he added.
Brooks has seen a surge in his poll numbers in recent weeks despite former President Trump's withdrawal of his endorsement to succeed Shelby in the Senate.
According to AL.com, a recent Emerson College poll showed a tight race between Brooks and his opponents, businessman and former Army Blackhawk pilot Mike Durant, and Shelby's former chief of staff Katie Britt.
The poll, released last week, shows Britt leading the race at 32%, with Durant at 26.4%, and Brooks at 25.1%.
A candidate in Alabama must receive 50% of the vote in order to get the nomination and avoid a runoff election. If no candidate reaches 50%, the two candidates with the highest vote totals will advance to the runoff.
Former "Black Hawk Down" pilot and Alabama Senate candidate Mike Durant speaks to Fox News' Brandon Gillespie in an exclusive interview on January 14, 2022. (Brandon Gillespie)
Brooks avoided answering questions about Trump's endorsement withdrawal, and instead touted being the consistent conservative in the race, as well as the "only MAGA-principled conservative candidate."
"If you happen to prefer a John McCain type of Republican, then Mike Durant is the person to vote for. And if you prefer a Mitch McConnell, establishment, open borders, cheap foreign labor, special interest group type of Republican, then Katie Britt is your choice," Brooks said.
"I'm the only one who's running for the United States Senate that has ever been elected to public office," he said. "With me, you've got some degree of certainty. With everybody else the voters are finally figuring this one key thing out: With them, no matter what they say, it's kind of like a crapshoot, a roll of the dice. It's a gamble."
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 15: Rep. Mo Brooks (R-AL) speaks at a news conference on the "Fire Fauci Act" on Capitol Hill on June 15, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Image)
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He went on to tout his understanding of economics and argued he had the "backbone" to stand up to the pressure of special interests and do the right thing to fix the nation's economic problems.
"The damage, it's all self-inflicted. This runaway inflation of the Biden administration, it comes down to two or three things," he said, accusing Biden of driving up U.S. energy costs by "attacking energy supplies," running massive budget deficits and providing government assistance to people not working.
"If we just get people into Washington with some economic understanding and the backbone to go with it, each of these problems are easily solved, but it comes down to will, not ability. I've got both," he said.