Former U.S. Sen. Doug Jones went live on Twitter Sunday night to discuss his predecessor Sen. Tommy Tuberville and his criticism of “pro-crime” Democrats at a rally over the weekend.
“This is a bridge too far. This racist rant at a MAGA rally just can’t go uncalled out. Somebody has just got to call bullshit on his bullshit,” Jones said. “I’m trying to think: Is this just a racist rant or is it ignorance? And I decided, you know, it’s probably both.”
On Saturday, Tuberville spoke at a rally in Nevada with former President Donald Trump, where he said Democrats aren’t just “soft on crime, they’re pro-crime.”
“They want reparations because they think the people who do the crime are owed that,” Tuberville said. “Bullshit!” he added as the crowd behind him broke out into cheers.
In the 13-minute clip, Jones provided context for each of the statements Tuberville made. “It’s this white nationalists appeal that harkens back to a really dark time,” Jones said.
“I don’t think any Democrat has ever proposed paying criminals,” he said.
Jones said he believed Tuberville was referring to people who are incarcerated. He added that those who are on probation, parole or were formerly incarcerated who are trying to make a life for themselves are “a different issue,” when receiving payment from the government.
“He knows full well that reparations are identified with the Black community in Alabama and across the country. In Alabama, it’s 27% of his constituents,” Jones said.
“It’s not hard to connect the dots between a rally in which he’s talking about Democrats wanting to pay reparations to criminals, and basically the broad brush that he’s painting, the Black community that they’re just criminals. Folks, that kind of crap has got to stop.”
Jones said that Democrats should not be the only people calling Tuberville out for his comments, adding that office holders and business leaders across the state should speak out.
He referenced efforts in the 1960s to remove Bull Connor, a staunch opposer of the Civil Rights movement, from office and said that Alabama needs to “do something to lift all boats.”
Jones added that Alabamians should speak out to “get rid of the extremes,” regardless of party stance, and said that extremism should not be tolerated in public or in private.
“We need to reset about where we are with race relations,” Jones said of the United States.
Tuberville in 2020 defeated Jones in the a race for the U.S. Senate.
