‘Racist, Disgusting, and Sad’: Herschel Walker Blasts Media, Columnist Calling Campaign ‘Insult to Black People’
Georgia Republican Senate candidate Herschel Walker lashed out at the media’s coverage of his jump into politics, specifically a piece calling his campaign an “insult to black people.”
“MSNBC featured this man on their network this week so he could spew even more anti-Black, anti-conservative vitriol in the name of mediocre TV ratings,” Walker said in a Wednesday email to supporters about Elie Mystal, a liberal commentator who has been fairly critical of the football star turned politician.
Walker is “an animated caricature of a Black person drawn by white conservatives,” Mystal wrote in a piece for The Nation Walker honed in on.
“I make a hard distinction between Black conservatives and these tokens [referring to me and Senator Tim Scott], who are out here right now, shucking and jiving for their white handlers,” Mystal said on MSNBC when referring to Walker.
The athlete — a running back in the NFL who played for teams like the Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants — called the attacks from Mystal “racist, disgusting, and sad.”
“I never wanted the color of my skin to be a focal point of this Senate campaign, but these attacks on my character and my skin color have gone too far,” he added.
Walker recently won his primary in Georgia, setting him up to face off against Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) in the midterms. Walker has been endorsed by former President Donald Trump, though he recently admitted he was “mad” at the Republican leader for claiming it was he that pushed Walker to run for Senate.
Mystal called Walker’s campaign a “white insult to Black people,” a line that particularly irked Walker.
“I won’t be quiet about this,” Walker wrote in reaction. “This columnist is saying horrible things about fellow human beings based on the color of their skin. That’s simply wrong.”
Walker has reacted to Mystal’s scathing op-ed before, even offering to “break bread” with his critic while appearing on Sean Hannity’s program last month.
“I was bullied when I was a little kid. Words are not going to hurt me right now,” Walker said at the time.
