A black Republican lawmaker from Texas responded to a heckler who accused him of being “racist” as he campaigned for former President Trump in Iowa on Monday.
Texas state Representative Wesley Hunt (R) appeared unfazed by the disruptive audience member, who accused Hunt of “degrading himself” and “turning his back” on black people as he spoke at a caucus site near Des Moines.
Tonight, at the Timberline Caucus, as I spoke on behalf of President Trump an enraged man attempted to stop my speech.
He shouted Trump was “racist.” You know, the same tired trope we’ve heard over and over again.
But on this day, of all days, Martin Luther King Day, the… pic.twitter.com/TrFnc7vZar
— Wesley Hunt (@WesleyHuntTX) January 16, 2024
“How can a black man do this on Martin Luther King day?” the man, who appeared to be black as well, shouted at Hunt as he walked toward him. “How can a black man stand here and talk to us about a racist?”
Members of the audience quickly grabbed the man and escorted him out.
“I was saying,” Hunt continued after the heckler was removed. “I come from a district in Houston, Texas, that’s a majority white district, and I won by 30 points.”
“Because on days like this I realize I am literally being judged not by the color of my skin, but by the content of my character,” Hunt said, invoking a line from Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech.
“And when I walk into rooms like this, I don’t see race, color, or creed, I see my fellow Americans that must join together in the fight to save our country,” Hunt said. “And the same loyalty that we have to you is the same loyalty that I have seen from President Trump.”
Later on Monday evening, Hunt posted about the incident on social media, saying an “enraged man” attempted to stop his speech shouting Trump was “racist.”
“You know, the same tired trope we’ve heard over and over again,” Hunt posted on X Monday evening.
“But on this day, of all days, Martin Luther King Day, the people of Iowa, just like President Trump, judge me not by the color of my skin, but by the content of my character. The anti-Trump movement is in full blown meltdown,” Hunt wrote.
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Hunt is a West Point graduate and flew Apache helicopters in the U.S. Army before running for office.
Trump won the Iowa caucuses Monday in a record landslide victory, garnering 51% of the vote with 99% of votes counted, according to the Associated Press.
The former president’s win was about 30 points ahead of the second place finisher, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who got just over 21% of the vote. Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley came in third with 19%.
Trump’s performance in Iowa gives him a strong early primary lead and brings him closer to clinching the GOP presidential nomination, although a formal nominee will not be declared for several months.