A Democratic congressman from Tennessee took a shot at Sen. Lindsey Graham and the voters of South Carolina, saying that “they have extra chromosomes.”
The Nashville Scene asked Rep. Jim Cooper (D-TN) about Democratic candidates spending hundreds of millions of dollars and losing. Here is Cooper’s response:
You’re probably talking about Jaime Harrison, who was an outstanding candidate. But that is South Carolina. I’ve said for years that they have extra chromosomes, South Carolina voters. Anybody who could re-elect Lindsey Graham after his two-faced performance on federal judges, they have a tolerance that I can’t imagine.
Rep. Jim Cooper (D-TN)
Cooper’s statement caught the ire of JD Flynn, the editor-in-chief of Catholic News Agency. Flynn took to Twitter to highlight Cooper’s incendiary comments as an attack on people with genetic disorders:
Cooper’s camp quickly backtracked on his outrageous comparison:
To be clear, he was referring to the legacy of bigots and racists, and a clearly high tolerance for hypocrisy in South Carolina. It was a poor analogy and he regrets it.
Cooper press secretary Katie Feldhaus Jackson
But, by that time, many of Cooper’s constituents had already expressed that they were none too happy:
Our Take…
This is your classic loudmouth buffoon who says whatever comes to mind. There’s really not much more that need to be said about Jim Cooper that hasn’t been covered.
Except, maybe this. Cooper is in such a safe Congressional seat, that he did not even face a Republican challenger. Not even token opposition. While he did face a primary challenger, there was no choice in his district for all voters on Election day.
When you have one-party rule dominating an area, this is what you get. You end up with entrenched politicians who will not likely face the consequences of their actions at the ballot box. Surely, Cooper will shrink back into national obscurity with little to-do. But if people truly wish change in government, you need to weed out Buffoons like Jim Cooper.
But before he does, let’s all call out his buffoonery in not only insulting a colleague and his voter base, but also offending so many American families and wonderful people living with Down’s Syndrome.