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By Kaitlin Lewis
Night Reporter
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Arizona Representative Eli Crane was quickly condemned on the House floor Thursday after using the phrase "colored people" while defending his amendment to the national defense bill.
Crane had proposed a measure to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would prohibit the consideration of "race, gender, religion, or political affiliations, or any other ideological concepts as the sole basis for recruitment, training education, promotion, or retention decisions." The Republican, who is also a member of the House Freedom Caucus, was one of several conservatives who put forth amendments to the crucial Pentagon spending bill, which allocates funding for the Defense Department for the next fiscal year.
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During debate on his amendment, Crane argued that his measure "has nothing to do with whether or not colored people, or Black people, or anybody can serve," adding, "It has nothing to do with the color of your skin, any of that stuff."
Democratic Congresswoman Joyce Beatty of Ohio, a member of the nonpartisan Congressional Black Caucus, quickly spoke out on Crane's statement, asking for the congressman's use of the dated term to be "struck from the record."
"I find it offensive, and very inappropriate," Beatty added on the House floor.
Crane later attempted to amend his remarks to "people of color," but Beatty pushed back that she was asking "to have the words stricken. I didn't ask to have the words amended."
The heated exchange was posted to Twitter by the account Acyn, and has received over 2 million views. The Congressional Black Caucus also reposted the moment on its own account, writing that Crane's words were "a shameful moment on the House floor."
"Rep. Eli Crane referring to Black service members who risk their lives for our country as 'colored people' is unconscionable," read the caucus tweet. "The GOP fights against diversity, equity and inclusion training and prove everyday why it's necessary."
Texas Representative Jasmine Crockett, another Democratic member of the caucus, also condemned Crane's statement, tweeting, "You can't make this up."
"This is who these people are, and who they've always been," Crockett added.
"After a day where Republicans fought to rid the government of diversity & inclusion, one of them finally let the hood slip," tweeted Congressman Troy Carter, a fellow Democratic of the caucus from Louisiana. "In the 21st century, I never thought I would hear black people called colored on the floor of the House of Representatives. Surely we are better than this."
Other lawmakers spoke out against Crane on Twitter, including Democratic Congressman Ruben Gallego, who represents Arizona's 3rd Congressional District.
"Eli [Crane] represents the home of the Navajo Code Talkers. There are statues that prove the strength of diversity in our military," Gallego wrote of his fellow Arizonan. "Hint to Eli: If you go visit the Navajo Nation, don't call them "colored people."
In a statement to Newsweek Thursday, Crane said that he "misspoke" during the "heated floor debate" and reiterated that his amendment was not about race.
"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. "Every one of us is made in the image of God and created equal."
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