WATCH: Democratic Senator Squirms, Quickly Flees When Confronted About His Membership in a Private Beach Club (UPDATE)

A Democratic Senator was confronted over the weekend about his membership in a private beach club which is facing questions about the racial makeup of its membership.

In a video shot Friday and published Saturday by GoLocal Prov, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) defended his membership of Bailey’s Beach Club in Newport, RI. GoLocal Prov reports that the club has an all-White membership. The club, in a statement (via the Providence Journal’s Amy Russo), is denying that claim.

“Back in 2017 you had expressed concerns about the membership of the all-White Bailey’s Beach Club, said you hoped it would become more diverse,” the reporter said, adding, “Has there been any traction on that? Are there any minority members of the club now?”

“I think the people who are running the place are still working on that and I’m sorry it hasn’t happened yet,” Whitehouse told a reporter for GoLocal Prov, before starting to walk away.

GoLocal Prov reports that Sandra Whitehouse, the senator’s wife, is one of the largest shareholders in the club. It describes the membership as a “who’s who [of] Newport, Palm Beach, and New York wealth.”

Whitehouse tried to escape, but the reporter did manage to keep up with him for a follow-up.

“You had remarks on the [Senate] floor following the deaths of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd on systemic racism in the country,” the reporter said. “Your thoughts on an elite, all-White, wealthy club in this day and age. Should these clubs continue to exist?”

“It’s a long tradition in Rhode Island and there are many of them and I think we just need to work our way through the issues,” Whitehouse said.

“Thank you,” he added, before being whisked away by a staffer.

Watch above, via GoLocal Prov.

UPDATE 3:52 p.m. ET — Rich Davidson, a spokesperson for Whitehouse, says that Bailey’s Beach Club does not have an all-White membership:

“The club has no such restrictive policy,” Davidson said — according to Trish Turner of ABC News. “The club has had and has members of color. The Senator has dedicated his entire career to promoting equity and protecting civil rights, as his record shows.”

UPDATE 1:26 p.m. Wednesday — This story has been updated to include Bailey’s Beach Club’s denial of having an all-White membership.