Sen. Mark Kirk (R-IL), who is engaged in a tough re-election fight this year, on Thursday said that Trump is “too bigoted and racist” for the state of Illinois.
“I do not support Hillary Clinton, and I told the public that I did not support Donald Trump, either. I think he’s too bigoted and racist for the Land of Lincoln,” Kirk said when asked by John Howell of Chicago radio station WLS-AM 890 whether he could support Clinton, according to a clip uploaded by Buzzfeed News.
Kirk announced last week that he had withdrawn his support for Trump, citing the presumptive Republican presidential nominee’s controversial comments and attacks.
“While I oppose the Democratic nominee, Donald Trump’s latest statements, in context with past attacks on Hispanics, women and the disabled like me, make it certain that I cannot and will not support my party’s nominee for President regardless of the political impact on my candidacy or the Republican Party,” the senator said in a statement.