Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., a candidate for the 2024 Republican nomination, rebuked former President Barack Obama's criticism of his saying the United States is not a racist country.
Obama, appearing Thursday on the "The Axe Files" podcast of David Axelrod, the chief strategist for his presidential campaigns and his former senior White House adviser, criticized Scott, who is Black, for not offering solutions for how to tackle systematic racism within the country or acknowledging the difficulties Black Americans face.
"If a Republican who may even be sincere in saying, 'I want us all to live together,' doesn't have a plan for how do we address crippling generational poverty that is a consequence of hundreds of years of racism in this society, and we need to do something about that," Obama said, "if that candidate is not willing to acknowledge that again and again we've seen discrimination in everything from ... getting a job to buying a house to how the criminal justice system operates; if somebody's not proposing — both acknowledging and proposing — elements that say, no, we can't just ignore all that and pretend as if everything's equal and fair, we actually have to walk the walk and not just talk the talk; if they're not doing that, then I think people are rightly skeptical."
Scott countered that the U.S. is "a land of opportunity, not a land of oppression."
"Democrats deny our progress to protect their power," Scott tweeted Thursday. “The Left wants you to believe faith in America is a fraud and progress in our nation is a myth. The truth of MY life disproves the lies of the radical Left.
“We live in a country where little Black and Brown boys and girls can be President of the United States. The truth is — we've had one and the good news is — we will have another."
Scott said that since he has announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination, he has seen the level of venom against him increase because he is a Black conservative running for president. During an interview Thursday on conservative talk show host Mark Levin's radio show, Scott recounted his appearance on "The View" and discussed its liberal Black hosts, Whoopi Goldberg and Sonny Hostin.
"[I was] sitting there with Sonny and Whoopi as they talked about systemic racism and made fun of me and Clarence Thomas because we both understand that this is not a racist country, that we are proud to be Americans, we're proud of the evolution," Scott said. "We should thank God almighty that this nation has afforded me — a kid raised in that single-parent household — not just to rise out of high school or to college, but to start my own business and to live my version of the American dream.
"It is possible, actually probable, if you get a good education. That is the key to success in America. The future of America is not determined by the color of your skin but by the quality of your education, by your grit, your talent, and your character. These are the characteristics that lead to Americans flourishing. We should celebrate that, not cancel it."
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