MSNBC guest says Republicans want ‘negroes’ like Herschel Walker because he’ll ‘do what he’s told’

Speaking with MSNBC host Tiffany Cross on “The Cross Connection” on Saturday, Elie Mystal, the justice correspondent for The Nation, called Senate candidate Herschel Walker a “negroe” who Republicans only like because he does “what he’s told.”

“Walker’s gonna do what he’s told and that’s what Republicans like,” Mystal told Cross. “That’s what Republicans want from their negroes: to do what they’re told. And Walker presents exactly as a person who lacks independent thoughts, lacks an independent agenda, lacks an independent ability to grasp policies and he’s just going to go in there and vote like Mitch McConnell tells him to vote.”

Mystal also referenced Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), who defeated Doug Jones (D) in 2020, saying: “I remember this has worked for the GOP in the south already. Tommy Tuberville, who right now is probably the dumbest person in the United States Senate, all he does is what Mitch McConnell tells him to do.”

Herschel responded to Mystal’s remarks in a video shared on Twitter. “You know a lot of people have been asking me to say something about the man on MSNBC who called me the n-word. Here’s what I gotta say about that: Shame on MSNBC and shame on him. I’m going to pray for both of them, because they need Jesus,” he said.

He then went on to reject claims by “leftwing crazies” who say America is fundamentally racist and “want to divide us, turn us against each other.” He also praised America as a “good country full of good people,” and he called on Georgia voters to unite.

Mystal has since doubled down on his comments, saying on Twitter: “It looks like white wing media spent the whole weekend promoting my spot on @TiffanyDCross where I explained Herschel Walker’s appeal to white conservatives was his willingness to do as he’s told. It’s like they’re trying to remind white people of his only qualification.”

Mystal also denied calling Walker “the N word,” and instead said that Walker is “trying to appeal to conservative whites who believe ‘all black people use the n-word, why can’t I?’ He’s trying to validate their racial hang-ups, and play a victim.”

Walker is currently running against Sen. Raphael Warnock (D) in Georgia. According to RealClearPolitics, Warnock is leading by 4.4%. Walker won the Republican primary in May with 68.2% of the vote and has been endorsed by former President Donald Trump and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.