Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue described the Florida governor’s race, which includes an African-American candidate, as “cotton-pickin’ important.”
Politico reported that the former Georgia governor's remarks came during a Saturday rally for GOP candidate Ron DeSantis, whose Democratic opponent is Andrew Gillum, the Tallahassee mayor who is seeking to become Florida's first black governor.
“Public policy matters. Leadership matters,” Perdue reportedly said. “And that is why this election is so cotton-pickin' important to the state of Florida. I hope you all don’t mess it up.”
The audio was provided to the news organization by the Democrat-aligned opposition research firm American Bridge.
Perdue, who has maintained many of his Georgia political ties since moving to Washington, has made several trips this fall to aid GOP candidates elsewhere. He recently ran into trouble for an Illinois appearance that a government watchdog alleged might have violated an anti-politicking law that bars federal officials from endorsing candidates while speaking in their official capacity.
This is the second time this year a Trump employee has gotten in trouble for using the racially-charged phrase. David Bossie, the president’s former deputy campaign manager, was suspended from his Fox News gig after telling an African-American panelist that he was “out of your cotton-pickin’ mind.”
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