Published 10:57 IST, October 17th 2020
Republican Senator Perdue mocks Kamala Harris' name, Democrats demand apology
Republican senator Perdue mocking first Black woman for VP nominee was not well received by the democrats as his act was tagged as ‘racist’ and ‘anti-semitic’.
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Republican US Senator David Perdue from Georgia on October 16 drew outrage after he mocked Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris' name at President Trump’s Macon, Georgia, rally and the democrats now demand an apology. Perdue consistently mispronounced Harris’ name to a crowd of cheering pro-Trump supporters as he called Democratic Vice Presidential candidate as KAH’-mah-lah? Kah-MAH’-lah? Kamala-mala-mala? adding, whatever.
However, a spokesperson for Perdue said that the GOP senator with sneering at his senate colleague for three years of South Asian descent “didn’t mean anything by it," according to sources of AP. Perdue mocking the first Black woman for a vice presidential nominee was not well received by the democrats as his act was tagged as ‘racist’ and ‘anti-semitic’. "The most insidious thing that Chuck Schumer and Joe Biden are trying to perpetuate, and Bernie [Sanders] and Elizabeth [Warren] and Kamala -- Kah-ma-la, or Kah-mah-la, or Kamala-mala-mala, I don't know, whatever.” Purdue scoffed, immediately earning a backlash on social media.
Democrat Jon Ossoff took to his official Twitter handle to discourage and call out at Perdue’s mockery, saying, “My opponent, GOP Sen. David Perdue of anti-Semitic attack ad infamy, just mocked Sen. Harris' name as "Kamala-mala-mala-whatever" at a Trump rally.” Further, he pointed out, “We’re so much better than this.”
BREAKING: GOP Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.) mocks Sen. Kamala Harris' name as "Kamala-mala-mala whatever" at Trump rally in Georgia.
— Jon Ossoff (@ossoff) October 16, 2020
Chip in $1 to end his career: https://t.co/iThIMKD9wZ pic.twitter.com/4lYKJ7x71l
David Perdue is just gross.
— Miryam Lipper (@MiryamLipper) October 16, 2020
He mispronounced @KamalaHarris' name just now warming up the stage for @realDonaldTrump to score race-baiting, cheap political cheers. pic.twitter.com/kiLmn8682A
Every kid with an ethnic name knows what it's like to be teased because of their name. But we expect better of a U.S. senator.
— Chris Lu (@ChrisLu44) October 17, 2020
Sen. Perdue, you won't have to worry about this after Jan. 20, 2021. She'll be "Madam Vice President" to you. https://t.co/AWTSl6JMLf
Perdue should be censured by the full Senate for this BEFORE he loses his seat and is no longer subject to their discipline.
— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) October 16, 2020
Either way, Purdue will forever be marked by history as a racist. https://t.co/d1C6tCzDoP
Perdue knows Kamala Harris well. They have served on the same Senate Budget committee, and served together for 4 years. So he’s clearly mocking her Asian name for some weird campaign purpose—it’s racist. #vote him out. @ossoff for the win. https://t.co/uhSaa37t2v
— Eric Feigl-Ding (@DrEricDing) October 16, 2020
Politicians like David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler seek only to divide us up on racial and political lines. @ossoff and I aren't going to let them. https://t.co/vHNrXlidbw
— Reverend Raphael Warnock (@ReverendWarnock) October 17, 2020
Remember: Sen. Perdue has served with Sen. Harris since January 2017 - more than 3.5 years. After more than 1,300 days as colleagues in a chamber of 100 people, he either has no idea how to pronounce her name, which I doubt, or he would rather just mock it for being different. https://t.co/jIakHkW302
— Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (@CongressmanRaja) October 16, 2020
Kamala's not that hard to pronounce. It's just as easy as Perdue, which is pronounced "racist." https://t.co/UcCMJ19JdC
— Hari Sevugan (@HariSevugan) October 16, 2020
Georgia senator simply 'mispronounced'
Meanwhile, John Burke, communications director for Perdue’s campaign said in a statement that the Georgia senator simply “mispronounced” Harris’ name while taking a stance against the radical socialist agenda candidate Jon Ossoff and Kamala were pushing which included Green New Deal, Medicare-for-all, raising taxes, COVID-19 relief cut in Georgia among other controversial policies. Sabrina Singh, Harris' press secretary took to Twitter to condemn Perdue’s behaviour. "Well, that is incredibly racist. Vote him out and vote for @ossoff,” she wrote.
Well that is incredibly racist.
— Sabrina Singh (@sabrinasingh24) October 16, 2020
Vote him out and vote for @ossoff https://t.co/XTLRXSJNem
Senator David Perdue worked alongside Vice Presidential nominee Senator Kamala Harris since 2017, and he obviously knows her name, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee said in an online statement. “Senator Perdue never would have done this to a male colleague. Or a white colleague. And everyone knows it,” Ossoff tweeted, sharing the video of Perdue’s comments. Demanding an apology for the “unacceptable” behaviour, chair of Georgia’s Democratic Party Nikema Williams said, “Senator Perdue’s intentionally disrespectful mispronunciation of Senator Harris’s name is a bigoted and racist tactic straight from President Trump’s handbook. He owes Georgians an apology for his offensive display.”
10:58 IST, October 17th 2020