Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) attacked Kamala Harris’s femininity while refusing to condemn Donald Trump’s racist attacks against the vice president in a chaotic appearance on a CNN panel that spiraled out of control Thursday.
Mace repeatedly mispronounced Harris’ name and stated that she would say her name “however she wants” before Michael Eric Dyson, a professor of African-American studies at Vanderbilt University, called her remarks “disgusting.”
“You know what? What women find repulsive is her disrespect for them,” Mace said. “She doesn’t know what a woman is. And that was 25 years ago -.”
“White women have no place in telling black women, who have paid their blood toll to make this country what it is, that they are not real women,” Dyson said.
Mace’s ridiculous claim came after Dyson said the congresswoman’s “whatever I want” remarks came from “the history and legacy of white people’s disregard for the humanity of black people.”
“Oh, so now you’re calling me a racist?” Mace said.
“I didn’t say —,” Dyson replied before the two argued on CNN.
Mace has doubled down on her mispronunciation of Harris’ name. Nicole Holliday, a professor of sociolinguistics, told HuffPost last month that right-wingers are messing up the vice president’s name “on purpose,” noting that it could be seen as a way to show that one is “not really with her politically.”
Mace, who was later asked by CNN’s Abby Phillip whether Trump should stop claiming Harris was “not really black” when he questioned her ethnicity last month, squirmed as she dodged the “yes or no” question.
“So, I mean, I, I didn’t hear him say that, I didn’t hear what he said about her race, I’m not going to comment on her race,” said Mace, who had also addressed other aspects of Harris’ identity earlier in the panel.
She later added, “Well, she’s biracial. She’s biracial.”
Phillip later said it didn’t take “much courage” to say Trump’s comments were “off limits.”
Democratic strategist Keith Boykin then urged Mace to “just say yes” before telling her that she was in a “cult” led by the former president.
“The fact that you talk to women like that is ridiculous,” Mace said.
“You just talked about a black woman like that,” Boykin replied when Phillip tried to end the broadcast.
“How so? She doesn’t know what a woman is,” Mace said, doubling down on her insult.
