Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) launched a new roundtable video series on Friday, highlighting the perspectives of five Republican members of Congress.
The series is called “America’s Starting Five” and features an informal conversation led by Scott alongside Reps. Byron Donalds (R-FL), Burgess Owens (R-UT), John James (R-MI), and Wesley Hunt (R-TX). The video segments are billed as “a series dedicated to Black Republican voices.”
The release of the video comes amid speculation that former President Donald Trump is considering Scott as a potential running mate in his quest to take back the White House in 2024. Many Republicans hope that such a pick could take support away from the Democratic Party, which has been the traditional choice for black voters.
In the first episode, the lawmakers focus on comments made by President Joe Biden during a controversial radio appearance in 2020, when Biden said that if black voters did not vote for him, then they “ain’t black.”
“Here are four non-black black people,” Scott said with a laugh. “An old white dude telling me I can’t be black if I don’t vote for him.”
“It’s sometimes frustrating as well as entertaining,” Scott told the others in the video. “Frustrating in that Democrats and Joe Biden get away with saying the darnedest things and never held accountable by anyone for the things they say so salaciously. Entertaining because that is funny.”
The video series is part of a larger effort to court black voters and is designed to replicate conversations taking place across the country. This comes as four recent polls, Quinnipiac, Economist-YouGov, New York Times-Siena, and Marquette University Law School, have shown that Trump has at least 20% support among black adults. In addition, a new Fox News survey shows him with the support of 26% of black voters.
Republicans are looking to build on these gains while also highlighting Biden’s gaffes. The lawmakers in the video played a soundbite of Biden’s comments that “poor kids are just as bright and talented as white kids.”
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“The arrogance of these white liberals condescending not just African Americans, but poor kids in general,” James said in the video. “He’s talking about a social, economic divide. He’s talking about elites against working-class and poor people. And this can explain why a lot of their policies are beginning to move things away from where they’re most needed.”
The second episode of “America’s Starting Five” is slated to come out on April 12.
