Politics

Republicans back away from Don Young's 'wetback' slur

House Speaker John Boehner and other Republicans in the party's national leadership on Friday condemned Rep. Don Young's recent reference to migrant farmworkers as "wetbacks," a statement Young quickly said he regretted, before issuing a more formal apology on Friday in the wake of backlash from both sides of the aisle. The incident comes as the national GOP tries to rebrand itself as appealing to Hispanics, who voted overwhelmingly for President Obama during last year's election.

In a prepared statement, Boehner, R-Ohio, condemned the Alaska Republican's racial slur, which came out during an interview with a radio station in Ketchikan, Alaska, on Thursday. In that interview, Young said he believed that a globalized economy and "automation" were in part due to the reduction in job opportunities in the U.S.

"My father had a ranch; we used to have 50-60 wetbacks to pick tomatoes," Young said in the interview. "It takes two people to pick the same tomatoes now. It's all done by machine."

Listen to the full transcript of the interview here.

Friday, Boehner blogged that Young's comments were "offensive" and "beneath the dignity of the office (Young) holds. I don't care why he said it -- there's no excuse and it warrants an immediate apology."

Congress is in the midst of trying to strike a deal on immigration reform and Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Preibus was among many others concerned about any lasting damage Rep. Young's remarks could have on the GOP's attempts to make in-roads with minority voters.

"(The Republican Party) represents freedom and opportunity for every American and a beacon of hope to those seeking liberty throughout the world. Offensive language and ethnic slurs have no place in our public discourse," Preibus was quoted as saying in Politico.

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Young issued a more full-throated apology Friday:

I apologize for the insensitive term I used during an interview in Ketchikan, Alaska. There was no malice in my heart or intent to offend; it was a poor choice of words. That word, and the negative attitudes that come with it, should be left in the 20th century, and I'm sorry that this has shifted our focus away from comprehensive immigration reform.

The hubbub comes as Young has tried to explain away to Alaskans why the House had launched another ethics investigation into him. Young on Thursday accused House Republicans of using him as a scapegoat in an ethics probe involving New Jersey Democratic Rep. Rob Andrews.

"I truly believe they had to have a Republican as well as a Democrat and, as you know, Andrew is under scrutiny too," Young told Alaska Dispatch when asked why the House Committee on Ethics was again investigating him.

Craig Medred

Craig Medred is a former writer for the Anchorage Daily News, Alaska Dispatch and Alaska Dispatch News. He left the ADN in 2015.

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