CNN host Brianna Keilar accused Republicans on Tuesday of using a “veiled slur” against Vice President Kamala Harris by suggesting she is a diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) hire.
Keilar was responding to Republican Tennessee Rep. Tim Burchett calling Harris a “DEI vice president” in an X post on Monday, as he criticized the media for remaining silent on President Joe Biden’s mental competency. Burchett said Harris is “one hundred percent DEI hire” during a Monday interview with CNN’s Manu Raju, where he cited Biden committing to hiring “a black female for vice president” during his 2020 campaign.
“We heard Congressman Tim Burchett calling Vice President Harris a DEI hire, which has kind of almost become this veiled slur, I think, because we see people using it when it doesn’t even make sense. People who weren’t hired but maybe were elected,” Keilar began. “And what we see is this tends to be something that is only said about people of color or people who are not men.”
Democratic Illinois Rep. Mike Quigley agreed “it is intended as a slur” to cover up Republicans real concerns about Harris being a former prosecutor since a jury convicted Trump in Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s hush money trial in May.
“Look, I believe it’s intended as a slur. I think you’re just starting to see the beginnings of that, and I think that the American people will see through that and unite against that sort of thing,” Quigley said. “And obviously, she’s not a hire, she’s elected by the United States of America, and it’s not a DEI label or past history that they’re worried about with her, it’s the fact that she was a prosecutor and their candidate is a convicted felon. This is a rich, diverse country. We like to think of that as a strength, not a weakness, and why not be represented by someone who represents so much of that fabric that we treasure?”
Biden endorsed Harris in a Sunday statement on X minutes after his official exit from the 2024 presidential race. The vice president’s campaign raised $81 million in the first 24 hours and has since raised over $100,000 from more than 1.1 million unique donors as of Tuesday, according to CBS News. (RELATED: ‘I’m Not A Fan’: Swing-State Voters Tell MSNBC They ‘Absolutely’ Don’t ‘Support’ Kamala Harris)
Liberal media pundits and Democrats accused Burchett and other critics of racism following the DEI comments as they criticize Harris ahead of the November election. Mara Gay, an opinion writer for The New York Times, told MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” Tuesday that Republicans’ “first instinct” was to spew “racist and sexist” talking points against her.
Democratic Florida Rep. Maxwell Frost said people calling Harris a “DEI hire” truly mean to call her the “N-word” during a Tuesday morning interview on CNN.
Harris announced she secured enough delegates to become the Democratic Party’s nominee on Tuesday, marking a stark contrast from the 844 delegates she won during her 2020 campaign. At least 2,688 delegates have pledged to back Harris as of Tuesday morning, exceeding the 1,976 necessary to secure the nomination.
