Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell spoke out on the rise in anti-Asian American crimes, condemning all crimes against anyone based off nationality or race.
“Asian Americans should not have to experience discrimination anywhere,” McConnell said in a statement to Axios.
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The Kentucky Republican added that he believes “committing a crime against anyone because of his or her national origin or race is deeply wrong and antithetical to our founding principles.”
McConnell’s comments follow reports that there’s been an 150% uptick in hate crimes against Asian Americans since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic that is speculated to have fueled some of the violence after the virus was first discovered in China.
A mass shooting in Atlanta, Georgia, this week left eight people dead, six of whom were Asian women. Police, however, are still investigating the motives for the killings.
During a press conference on Thursday, Police Chief Charles Hampton Jr. said “nothing is off the table” for the investigation when asked if the police classified the attack as a hate crime.
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McConnell is married to former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, the first Asian American woman and first Taiwanese American to hold a Cabinet position.
