Obama Addresses Tim Scott's Racism Rhetoric: 'People Are Rightly Skeptical'

South Carolina Senator Tim Scott's view on racism in America must be met with "an honest accounting" of the nation's history, said former President Barack Obama.

Scott, the only Black Republican serving in the U.S. Senate, joined a crowded pool of candidates challenging for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination last month and kicked off his campaign touting himself as "the candidate the far left fears the most."

"I disrupt their narrative," Scott said, speaking at Charleston Southern University on May 22. "I threaten their control. The truth of my life disproves their lies."

Raised in an impoverished household, Scott argues that his existence challenges Democratic narratives around race and class, and has argued that discussion of race "highlights the divisions I've been pushing forward to erase." His stance matches the message offered by other Republican candidates, such as former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley who said the United States is "not a racist country."

Obama's comments on race were shared during a conversation with David Axelrod, his former senior adviser, on The Axe Files podcast on Thursday. They arrived a few weeks after Scott delivered a similar message on The View. During his heated appearance on the talk show this month, Scott argued against "comments that were made frankly on this show, that the only way for a young African American kid to be successful in this country is to be the exception and not the rule."

"That is a dangerous, offensive, disgusting message to send to our young people today, that the only way to succeed is to be the exception," Scott added, pointing to how Black Americans had progressed to hold important political roles, including Obama's presidency.

The former president was asked about Scott's messaging while speaking with Axelrod, to which Obama responded, "I think there is a long history of African American or other minority candidates within the Republican Party who will validate America and say, 'Everything's great, and we can all make it.'"

"Look, I'm not being cynical about Tim Scott individually," Obama continued. "I am maybe suggesting that the rhetoric of, 'Can't we all get along?' ... That has to be undergirded with an honest accounting of our past and our present."

"And so, if a Republican who may even be sincere in saying, 'I want us all to live together,' doesn't have a plan for how do we address crippling generational poverty that is a consequence of hundreds of years of racism in the society ... If somebody is not proposing, both acknowledging and proposing elements that say, 'No, we can't just ignore all that and pretend as if everything's equal and fair' ... then I think people are rightly skeptical," he added.

Scott's depiction of racism in America matches the growing argument from much of the GOP around culture wars and school curriculum. During his announcement speech in May, the senator spoke about the need for "Less CRT, and more ABCs" in public schools.

Haley, an Indian-American and daughter of immigrants, has made similar messaging since launching her presidential bid. A spokesperson for her campaign told The New York Times this month, "In Nikki Haley's experience, America is not a racist country, and she's proud to say it. That's fact, not strategy."

"The only people who seem bothered by that," Haley's spokesperson added, are "liberal race baiters."

"There may come a time where there's somebody in the Republican Party that is more serious about actually addressing some of the deep inequality that still exists in our society that tracks race and is a consequence of our racial history," Obama said on Thursday. "And if that happens, I think that would be fantastic. I haven't yet seen it."

When reached for comment, a spokesperson for Scott's campaign directed Newsweek to a tweet from the senator Thursday evening addressing his and Obama's differing viewpoints.

"Let us not forget we are a land of opportunity, not a land of oppression," Scott wrote. "Democrats deny our progress to protect their power. The Left wants you to believe faith in America is a fraud and progress in our nation is a myth. The truth of MY life disproves the lies of the radical Left."

"We live in a country where little Black and Brown boys and girls can be President of the United States," he continued. "The truth is—we've had one and the good news is—we will have another."

Update 06/15/2023, 11:45 p.m. ET: This story has been updated with additional comment from Scott's campaign.