'Baseless': MSNBC host delivers searing takedown of election-denying Republican lawmaker
An MSNBC host leveled a MAGA Republican lawmaker Tuesday night who joined colleagues and allies in calling Vice President Kamala Harris a "DEI" hire, referring to diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.
Stephanie Ruhle called out the GOP for bringing race into the conversation when talking about Harris, who President Joe Biden endorsed to replace him on the ticket after he dropped out of the presidential race over the weekend.
Ruhle played a clip of Tennessee Rep. Tim Burchett telling CNN that Biden in 2020 said he wanted to "hire a Black female for vice president."
"What about white females? What about any other group?" asked Burchett. "When you go down that route, you take mediocrity and that's what they have right now as vice president."
Read also: Watch: MSNBC host spars with guest in heated debate over Trump and Business Roundtable
When the reporter asked Burchett specifically if he believes Harris was a "DEI hire," he replied, "One hundred percent she was a DEI hire."
Ruhle delivered a brutal fact-check to Burchett, noting Harris served as the district attorney for San Francisco, attorney general for California, a U.S. senator, and currently as vice president. As for the "man who called her a 'mediocre DEI hire?'"
"He's a longtime state lawmaker and then he became a congressman. In Congress, he challenged the results of the 2020 election. After a school shooting in his state last year, he said there was no role for Congress to do anything about mass shootings, and he openly said he believes that not only does the U.S. have a UFO, it is currently trying to reverse engineer it."
Ruhle called Burchett's remarks a "ridiculous, baseless, targeted" attack.