Mississippi State Sen. Chris McDaniel (R), the conservative challenger to Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS), argued that hip-hop and a society that “values rap and destruction of community values” is the reason for gun violence.
McDaniel made the comments in the promo for a syndicated radio program he hosted from 2004 to 2007. Those comments were flagged Saturday by the Darkhorse Mississippi blog and reported Tuesday by Mother Jones.
“The reason Canada is breaking out with brand new gun violence has nothing to do with the United States and guns,” McDaniel said in the teaser. “It has everything to do with a culture that is morally bankrupt. What kind of culture is that? It’s called hip-hop.”
The corrupting aspects of hip-hop, per McDaniel, aren’t based on race. It promotes “destruction of community values,” he said.
“Name a redeeming quality of hip-hop. I want to know anything about hip-hop that has been good for this country. “And it’s not—before you get carried away—this has nothing to do with race. Because there are just as many hip-hopping white kids and Asian kids as there are hip-hopping black kids. It’s a problem of a culture that values prison more than college; a culture that values rap and destruction of community values more than it does poetry; a culture that can’t stand education. It’s that culture that can’t get control of itself.”
In the same segment McDaniel argued that waterboarding, as used on Khalid Sheikh Muhammad, one of the masterminds behind the 9/11 attacks, was an effective tool only demonized by liberals.
“Waterboarding is something they do to people to make them talk. It is torture, to the liberals. It is a fairly humane form of torture, if you classify it as such,” McDaniel also said. “Here’s what happens: You make the guy believe he’s going to drown. And as you know it’s a pretty strong fear—drowning. Well this guy, Muhammad, he spoke all day. He spoke all night. Anything and everything, just let me avoid the waterboard. Because you see Mr. Muhammad here apparently had a problem with drowning. And that worked.”
In 2013 news broke that the tea party favorite attended at least one Neo-Confederate event.
McDaniel is a favorite of outside conservative groups and has been endorsed by The Senate Conservatives Fund, FreedomWorks and The Madison Project.
