MILWAUKEE (AP) – Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson is called racist for an interview in which the white Republican said he was not worried about President Donald Trump’s predominantly white supporters during the deadly uprising at the Capitol, but that he might like they had been Black Lives Matter protesters.
In an interview Thursday with syndicated radio host Joe Pagliarulo, Johnson said of those who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 to try to prevent Congress from certifying President Joe Biden’s election victory: breaking the law, so I wasn’t worried. “
“Now, if the tables had turned, and Joe – this is going to get me in trouble – if the tables had turned and President Trump had won the election and tens of thousands of Black Lives Matter and antifa, I might have been a little concerned. Johnson said, referring to far-left protesters known as anti-fascists who oppose neo-Nazis and white supremacists at demonstrations and other events.
Five people died in the attack on the Capitol, including a police officer, and 140 officers were injured. The uprising also caused widespread damage and led to National Guard troops being called up to restore order. More than 300 Trump supporters have been charged with storming the building, including members of far-right extremist groups.
Johnson’s comments sparked outrage among Wisconsin Democrats, including Senator LaTonya Johnson of Milwaukee.
“When he says such a racist thing, it’s ridiculous,” said the senator, who is black. “It’s an utterly racist comment and the insult to the injury is that he didn’t mind saying it in the position he holds, because for some reason this is just considered acceptable behavior for people who are in this state to live and be elected. “
Ron Johnson told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he made the comment because many of the protests over George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis last summer turned violent and caused widespread property damage. The unrest in the days following the handcuffed black man’s death on May 25 while in police custody caused extensive damage in cities across the country – an estimated $ 500 million in the Minneapolis-St. Paul alone.
“That’s why I would have been more concerned,” Johnson said in a statement.
Democrats seeking the two-term senator’s seat next year quickly proclaimed him.
Ron Johnson is a racist and unfit to serve the people of Wisconsin. There is no context missing here. He knew what he was saying, he knew not to say it, but this is who he is, ”said Alex Lasry, president of Milwaukee Bucks.
Tom Nelson, the Outagamie County executive who is also seeking the Democratic nomination, said Johnson has hit “a new despicable low” with his remarks.