South Carolina Senator Tim Scott called out hosts of The View for previous comments about him not “understanding” racism.
Host Sunny Hostin questioned Scott's dismissal of systemic racism in previous remarks.
"One of the reasons why I'm on this show is because of the comments that were made frankly on this show that the only way for a young African American kid to be successful in this country is to be the exception and not the rule," the South Carolina Senator said of the panel's previous criticism. "That is a dangerous, offensive, disgusting message to send to our young people today — that the only way to succeed is by being the exception."
"I will tell you that if my life is the exception—" Scott said before Hostin cut him off by insisting his life was the exception.
Scott cited a previous African American president, vice president, and two secretaries of state among other black Americans in positions of power.
Hostin rebutted Scott's examples, insisting they were still "exceptions."
"Here's what I'm going to suggest," he continued. "The fact of the matter is that progress in America is palpable. It can be measured in generations."
The South Carolina senator provided a story of his grandfather experiencing racism.
"That man believed then, what some doubt now, in the goodness of America” he said. "He believed that having faith in God, faith in himself, and faith in what the future could hold for his kids would unleash opportunities in ways that you cannot imagine."
Scott continued, citing progress on race relations in America over generations.
"What I'm suggesting is that yesterday's exception is today's rule," he said as Hostin continued pushing back. "The concept of America is that we are gonna become a more perfect union."
"That in fact, the challenges we faced fifty ... sixty years ago should not be the challenges that we face today," he said, citing 10 percent of black Americans graduated with a high school degree when his mother was born compared to over 90 percent today.
In May, The View co-host Joy Behar suggested Scott, along with Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, didn't understand racism.
"He’s one of these guys, who, you know, like Clarence Thomas, a black Republican, who believes in ‘pull yourself up by your bootstraps,’ rather than to me, understanding the systemic racism that African Americans face in this country and other minorities,” Behar said. “He doesn’t get it. Neither does Clarence. And that’s why they’re Republicans.”
Last month, the South Carolina Senator launched his bid for president in 2024.
“Today, our country is once again being tested,” Scott said. “Once again, our divisions run deep and the threat to our future is real.”
“Joe Biden and the radical left have chosen a culture of grievance over greatness. They are promoting victimhood instead of personal responsibility,” the senator continued. “And they are indoctrinating our children to believe we live in an evil country. And all too often when they get called out for their failures, they weaponize race to divide us – to hold on to their power.”
“I know America is a land of opportunity, not a land of oppression,” Scott said. “I know it because I have lived it.”
