Sen. Tim Scott said he found the discourse onstage during Tuesday night’s Democratic presidential debate insulting to black voters in his home state of South Carolina.
“It was a hot mess,” the Republican lawmaker said Wednesday morning on Fox & Friends. “What you saw on the stage yesterday was as if there were no white folks watching seven white candidates talk about black people.”
Scott said, “It was a really good night for Republicans … and a pathetic performance from my perspective” by Democrats.
“What you saw last night was really pandering and patronizing,” he added.
On several occasions Tuesday night, the candidates mentioned the 1994 Crime Bill, the First Step Act, and other criminal justice issues that have affected black Americans in recent years.
Primary voters head to the polls Saturday in South Carolina, a state where the black vote is seen as key to securing the Democratic nomination. Former Vice President Joe Biden feels confident about his chances in the state and received a boost after picking up a key endorsement from Rep. Jim Clyburn, a kingmaker in South Carolina politics.
Biden currently leads most South Carolina polls. Some show him narrowly ahead of Sen. Bernie Sanders, the current front-runner in the race, but others show him leading the Vermont senator by a larger margin.
Scott, the only black Republican in the Senate, predicted Biden would win his state.
“There’s a reason why the rearview mirror is so small, and the windshield is so big on the car,” he said. “We want to focus on the future.”
