Tim Scott, the single Black Republican in the United States Senate and a former candidate for President of the United States, took to The Ingraham Angle recently to defend his endorsement of Donald Trump for President. He did this in the face of critics who claimed that he was a hypocrite, and had some choice words to say about the former President.
Tim Scott in the Headlines
Tim Scott is not the most popular Republican in Congress. Up until this last year, he tended to be one of the quieter members, often being overshadowed by more prominent members of his conference when it came to headlines.
However, this year has seen a turnaround for Tim Scott. Between his announcement of candidacy for president, multiple presidential debates, and his subsequent bowing out of the race in order to endorse Donald Trump, the senator has seen quite a few big headlines.
Scott Defending Himself to Critics
Most recently, Scott had to defend his endorsement of the former president against potential criticism from those who believe that Donald Trump is not the friendliest candidate for minorities. Trump’s voter base contains members of active white supremecist organizations, which might seem to be contradictory for a Black man to support.
Scott decided to get ahead of the criticism, though he didn’t take to social media or release a statement in order to do so. Instead, he took a guest spot on The Ingraham Angle, where he spoke with Laura Ingraham to respond to his potential critics.
Ingraham Asking a Difficult Question
In the interview, Ingraham questioned Scott whether he was concerned about critics who would call him out for his support of Trump. She pointed out that Trump had made comments that could be construed as deeply offensive about minorities in the past.
Tim Scott responded, stating that he didn’t anticipate much controversy regarding his nomination. Donald Trump is, after all, the presumptive nominee after announcing his third run for president, and it’s not a surprise that Republican establishmentarians would support the likely nominee for the Republican bid.
“The Left Will Lose Their Mind”
Scott didn’t stop there, though. He went on to say that he did “expect the left to lose their mind because Donald Trump did more for minorities than Joe Biden…will ever do.” The bold statement was followed up with multiple different examples of how Scott believed that Trump did more for minorities than Biden, while Ingraham listened intently.
Scott pointed out that the Trump administration fully supported and allocated funding for historically Black colleges and universities (HBCU’s), as well as supporting other institutions that served a significant number of minority students.
Praising the Trump Administration
He also went on to praise the Trump administration’s efforts to address problems that historically affect Black people disproportionately. These include efforts in the economy and unemployment, as well as efforts to fund research into sickle cell anemia, a blood disease that disproportionately affects Black Americans.
Scott even went so far to echo some of the sentiments that Trump himself stated during his run in the White House. Trump, while President, claimed that he did more for Black and brown Americans than any other president since Abraham Lincoln, and Scott concluded his statement by saying that Trump would help everybody, because he liked everybody.
Scott’s Hypocrisy
Scott’s comments about Trump were not the only controversial part of the interview. Ingraham then went on to ask Scott how he was able to justify supporting Trump while simultaneously tearing down the person who got his career in the Senate started in the first place.
Ingraham’s question was in reference to the fact that Tim Scott has been going out of his way to criticize Nikki Haley during her campaign for the presidency. Haley was the one who put Scott in the Senate, when she appointed him to the seat, and when Trump asked Scott about it, he said, “I don’t hate her, I just really love you.”
Reactions from the Internet
The internet did not respond kindly to Scott’s comments once they were publicized, as is often the case. Ingraham posted her interview with Scott on X, formerly known as Twitter, and the commentary from the Twitter audience was swift, and scathing.
People called him out for how weak he appeared with his commentary towards Trump, with one person calling Scott “garbage” and another an “embarrassment.” One person even called out Scott’s “I love you” comment as “cringe,” and stated that he should feel embarrassed for himself.
A Bid for VP?
One X user theorized that Scott’s comments were a thinly-disguised bid to try and make himself an appealing VP candidate for Donald Trump, ahead of the Republican nomination for president. Trump has yet to announce his pick for VP, should he get the nomination, and the speculation regarding his choice has been running rampant.
The general sentiment was that Scott’s attitude was not only embarrassing, but a stain on his record as a lawmaker. Many people expressed the opinion that Scott’s actions had lost him a lot of respect with conservative and moderate constituents, and pointed out that his actions not only appeared disingenuous, but also rank of pandering.
Scott’s Being Watched
The reasoning behind Scott’s comments remains to be seen. It’s entirely possible that Scott believes the rhetoric that he spouted on The Ingraham Angle, but it’s just as likely that he’s trying to appeal to both Trump and the Trump base ahead of the 2024 election season.
The impact on Scott’s approval rating after this interview will be interesting to see. If the general reaction of the internet is any indication, things aren’t looking good for the senator going into spring and summer of this year. Of course, vocal commenters on the internet are a small portion of the population, and it’s entirely possible that Scott will skate into election season with a high approval rating, and a potential VP nomination to boot.
