Jim Clyburn said “tokenism is all right with” Nancy Pelosi and Steny Hoyer before walking back his remarks
House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn accused House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Speaker Nancy Pelosi of not prioritizing diversity hiring within their congressional offices — charging that “tokenism is all right with” his Democratic leadership colleagues before walking back his remarks.
Asked whether Pelosi and Hoyer have been pressed to take on more black staffers, Clyburn responded: “I don’t have to tell them.”The Journal reported that Clyburn sought to clarify his comments in a subsequent interview, claiming he was attempting to critique broader “tokenism” on Capitol Hill. Seventy percent of Hoyer's staff identifies as female, people of color or LGBT, and 24 percent are African-American, a spokeswoman for his office told the Journal. Of Pelosi's leadership and district staff, 84 percent identify as either women, people of color or LGBT, a spokesman for the speaker's office told the Journal. A Clyburn spokeswoman told the Journal his office is 58 percent black.
The remarks from Clyburn, the highest-ranking African American in Congress, represent a remarkable fissure within the upper echelons of House leadership at a time when the Democratic caucus has struggled to maintain a united front over the question of whether to begin impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump.
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