DISCLAIMER: this article contains profanity as quoted from elected officials.
DENVER— A Democrat found himself admonished for using profanity on the floor of Colorado’s state House of Representatives Friday when he quoted President Donald Trump and asked whether the message promoted by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is dead.
Rep. Jovan Melton (D-Aurora,) who is black, asked: “Has Martin Luther King’s message of love and of unity, has that died?”
He first referenced previous comments from Trump—both as President and as a candidate—that were widely criticized as racist, including by fellow Republicans.
And then Melton brought up this week’s quote of President Trump slamming “shithole countries” being included in an immigration proposal.
The President has disputed the quote, though lawmakers from both parties who were present have confirmed that he said it.
“We’ve seen [President Trump] say that people from Africa, people from Haiti, they live in shitholes, and I’m sorry to have to repeat that word, but that is what has been said,” Melton said.
At that point, House Speaker Crisanta Duran, also a Democrat, interrupted: “I would ask that we do not cuss during this presentation of the resolution.”
“Again, I apologize for the word,” Melton replied. “I am quoting the current leader of the free world.”
Melton went on to issue a challenge to his fellow lawmakers, “that you call out hate and bigotry and things that divide us.”
