GOP rep: Sessions attacks part of ‘war on whites’

 The Hill ^ | 1/11/2017 | Mark Hensch 


Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) said accusations of racism against Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), Donald Trump's attorney general nominee, stem from Democrats' ongoing "war on whites."
"It's really about political power and racial division and what I refer to, on occasion, as the 'war on whites,'" he said on WBHP 800 Alabama radio, as first reported by CNN Wednesday. "And the Democrats are not shy about lying in order to achieve their political goals."
"And if they have to besmirch the reputation of a good man, Jeff Sessions, in order to achieve their political goals, they, as a group, are not hesitant to do so," Brooks said.
Brooks added Democrats use allegations of racism to unfairly unite African-American voters against Republicans.
"They are trying to motivate the African-American vote to vote-bloc for Democrats by using every Republican is a racist tool they can envision, even if they have to lie about it."
Brooks was answering a question about criticism of Sessions's record on civil rights, which is under fresh scrutiny while he undergoes Senate confirmation hearings.
Sessions was denied a federal judgeship in 1986 in part because of disparaging remarks he allegedly made about the NAACP and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). He strongly denied the accusations back then and again this week. Critics also point to his prosecution of black voting rights activists for voter fraud and other civil rights concerns.
Sessions said this week that he was hurt by the characterization.
Sessions's supporters argue that he has a strong record on civil rights, and point to a notable case in which Sessions's office, when he was a U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Alabama, handed down a death sentence in a KKK lynching case.
Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) testified against Sessions Wednesday.
Booker said the unprecedented move was inspired by a moral obligation to speak out against Sessions's confirmation.
"Sen. Sessions has not demonstrated a commitment to a central requisite of the job to aggressively pursue the congressional mandate of civil rights, equal rights and justice for all of our citizens," he said during his testimony.
Brooks said Tuesday he is under consideration by Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley (R) to replace Sessions in the Senate if the latter is confirmed.
The House lawmaker previously accused Democrats of waging a "war on whites" while discussing immigration reform in August 2014.