MSNBC host Joy Reid asked Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) if his Republican House colleagues nominated him for speaker last week as a “diversity statement” Tuesday on her show “The ReidOut.”
Reid said, “You were nominated for speaker. You have been in Congress for one term. What were your qualifications to be speaker of the House?”
Donalds said, “I think my colleagues recognize my leadership and have seen it in leaps and bounds.”
Reid asked, “Can you give specifics?”
Donalds said, “I have served at the state level.”
Reid continued, “You have been there one term, and you’re saying that you would be prepared after one term to do the job that Speaker Pelosi and others who were in leadership, you ran for leadership, and you lost that leadership race to the congresswoman who ended up being in leadership. You were not elected to leadership, but you believe though you have never served in leadership ever, and have only served one term, you believe were qualified. Because you got into it back and forth with a fellow congresswoman who was critical of the nomination because it definitely looked like they were looking for a response to Hakeem Jeffries, in you.”
Donald said, “No. That was not it.”
Reid said, “One of the things that, I don’t know that you said it, but members have said they wanted to highlight the diversity of the conference. There are four African-American members in the House caucus, the Republican caucus. There are 56 members in the Democratic caucus. So just it’s more diverse.”
She asked, “So do you not believe that the idea was to make a diversity statement by nominating you?”
Donalds said, “That was not the idea because I was in the room when the decision was made by people who chose to nominate me. That never came up.”
Follow Pam Key on Twitter @pamkeyNEN
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