Bakari Sellers Gets Ripped on Twitter for Claiming Nikki Haley ‘Misspoke’ About Confederate Flag: ‘Nah, Brah’
CNN commentator Bakari Sellers predicted Twitter would “hate” his defense of former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley’s remarks about the Confederate flag, and he was right, if his ratio is any indication.
Haley, also the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, recently told Glenn Beck that the Confederate battle flag was seen as a symbol of “service, and sacrifice, and heritage” until it was “hijacked” by racist mass-murdering terrorist Dylann Roof. During that extended riff on the massacre at Charleston’s Mother Emanuel AME Church, she also accused the media of wanting to make the attack “about racism.”
Sellers, a former South Carolina state legislator, appeared to rise to Haley’s defense on Twitter Friday, writing “Twitter will hate me for this. I know @NikkiHaley and believe she misspoke. She knows the pain associated with the flag.”
Twitter will hate me for this. I know @NikkiHaley and believe she misspoke. She knows the pain associated with the flag. https://t.co/dfcUueGCS3
— Bakari Sellers (@Bakari_Sellers) December 6, 2019
Sellers was half right, Twitter users didn’t hate him, but were not pleased with his analysis. Many agreed that Haley well knew the pain associated with the flag — pointing out that Haley was still openly defending the Confederate flag just months before the massacre — but deliberately dismissed it in order to pander to the kind of people who feel kinship with supporters of the flag.
Orrrrr non-Black PoC know very well that anti-Blackness is a strong currency in the U.S. and she, like so many others like her, relies heavily on it to make her political ends meet. https://t.co/nUAmuq6Pei
— Winky Dinky Hoecake (@FeministaJones) December 6, 2019
Nah Brah,
She meant what she said. She resisted removal of the confederate flag from the capital until after the Charleston massacre.
She doesn’t need you to cape for her. She really meant that the flag represents “service, sacrifice, and heritage.”https://t.co/N0ifU2dwp8
— Bishop Talbert Swan (@TalbertSwan) December 7, 2019
Yes, you will be attacked and you will deserve it. She said what she said. She’s a grown ass women who has made her living off of comminicating ideas. She knew what she was saying and she knows why she’s saying it.—One Black friend and all.
— Dr. Avis (@SistahScholar) December 6, 2019
Serious question—would she had made this mistake on CNN it was this part of her pander campaign?
— Joe Lockhart (@joelockhart) December 6, 2019
How can you possibly speak for her?
That wasn’t an accidental political position. That is who she is.
— Grant Stern (@grantstern) December 6, 2019
Right. This is a dog whistle to her base. Plain and simple.
Southern governor. UN Ambassador for 45, but made sure to note her policy and temperament differences (though, she took the job to say she did w/ his voters). Wholesome “mom.” She knows what she’s doing, indeed.
— Bärí A. Williams (@BariAWilliams) December 6, 2019
No she didn’t @Bakari_Sellers. @NikkiHaley knows exactly what she meant by this. We have heard this BS before. And I will explain fully at 6 pm EST today on #RolandMartinUnfiltered. Y’all better buckle up. I’m ready to #BringTheFunk on this trash ass comment Haley made. https://t.co/TRSeWCopXp
— rolandsmartin (@rolandsmartin) December 6, 2019
Why on earth would Bakari Sellers go out on a limb to defend Nikki Haley? What is the point of that? pic.twitter.com/qWOICSLVN8
— Kimberly Nicole Foster (@KimberlyNFoster) December 7, 2019
As of this writing, Sellers’ tweet has received almost four thousand replies, and only about two hundred retweets.
Sellers himself did address one of the replies, acknowledging the possibility that Haley made the remark for political effect. TPM’s Josh Marshall wrote “isn’t it possible she knows but now she’s on her heir-to-Trump tour and said it anyway?”
“Yes. Possible,” Sellers replied.
Yes. Possible.
— Bakari Sellers (@Bakari_Sellers) December 6, 2019
In fairness to Sellers, it’s also possible that his professed belief that Haley “misspoke” — during an extended and fairly comprehensive set of remarks — was actually an attempt to persuade Haley to back away from the comments.
Watch Haley’s remarks above, via TheBlaze.
