McConnell responds to uproar over comments

Senate Minority Leader Mitch Connell pushed back Friday against the uproar over a comment he made about African American voters, calling the criticism directed his way “outrageous.”

“I’ve never been accused of this sort of thing before, and it’s hurtful and offensive,” he said. “And I think some of the critics know it’s totally nonsense.”

Following a speech at the Kentuckians for Better Transportation’s annual conference in Louisville, the Republican leader said he misspoke at a news conference in Washington on Wednesday when he uttered words that caused an outcry on social media. The timing was also notable, coming the same day that McConnell engineered a filibuster to block voting legislation that Democrats and civil rights leaders say is vital to protecting democracy.

He had said that “African American voters are voting in just as high a percentage as Americans.” Instead, McConnell explained, he should have said the word “all” before “Americans.”

On Friday, McConnell also defended his record on race by noting that he attended Rev. Martin Luther King’s March on Washington. He also helped organize a civil rights march at Kentucky’s state Capitol.