Rep. Eli Crane (R-Ariz.) referred to non-white Americans serving in the U.S. military as “colored people” in a shocking moment on the House floor Thursday, prompting a sharp rebuke from the former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus.
Crane, a member of the far-right House Freedom Caucus, put forward an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act on Thursday that would ban consideration of “race, gender, religion, or political affiliations, or any other ideological concepts” in recruitment or promotion decisions as well as other aspects of military retention.
Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), who chaired the Congressional Black Caucus from 2021 to 2023, took to the floor to argue the proposal would set back rights gained by people of color and women. Crane then went on to reject her arguments:
“Though that was unbelievably inspiring, my amendment has nothing to do with whether or not colored people or Black people or anybody can serve, OK?” he said. “What we want to preserve and maintain is the fact that our military does not become a social experiment. We want the best of the best; we want to have standards that guide who’s in what unit, what they do.”
“I hope my colleagues on the other side can understand what we’re doing,” he said in closing.
Another person in the chamber can be heard questioning the term “colored people” before Beatty interjects.
“I’d like to be recognized to have the words ‘colored people’ stricken from the record,” she said. “I find it offensive and very inappropriate. … I am asking for unanimous consent to take down the words of referring to me or any of my colleagues as ‘colored people.’”
Crane later asked to have his comments amended to “people of color.” That request was rejected but the words “colored people” were removed from the record without objection.
The lawmaker said later he misspoke.
“In a heated floor debate on my amendment that would prohibit discrimination on the color of one’s skin in the Armed Forces, I misspoke,” Crane said in a statement, per The Hill. “Every one of us is made in the image of God and created equal.”
Democrats, however, were livid after his House floor remarks. The Congressional Black Caucus said Crane’s words were “unconscionable,” adding it was a “shameful moment on the House floor.”
“The GOP fights against diversity, equity and inclusion training and prove every day why it’s necessary,” the group wrote on Twitter.