Michigan GOP lawmaker stripped of committee role, staff after alleged online racist post

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• Rep. Josh Schriver, a Michigan lawmaker, has lost his committee assignment and staff after allegedly sharing a racist post on social media.
• House Speaker Joe Tate, a Democrat, said he will not allow the House to be a forum for "racist, hateful and bigoted speech."
• Tate removed Schriver from the committee and put his staff under oversight, citing Schriver's history of promoting dangerous rhetoric.

A Republican lawmaker in Michigan lost his committee assignment and staff Monday, days after posting an image of a racist ideology on social media.

House Speaker Joe Tate, a Democrat who is Black, said he will not allow the House to be a forum for "racist, hateful and bigoted speech."

State Rep. Josh Schriver, who is white, shared a post on X — formerly known as Twitter — that showed a map of the world with Black figures greatly outnumbering white figures, along with the phrase, "The great replacement!"

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The conspiracy theory says there’s a plot to diminish the influence of white people.

Rep. Josh Schriver on the floor of the Michigan House of Representatives, at the Michigan Capitol, in Lansing, Michigan, on Oct. 10, 2023. Schriver lost his committee assignment and staff on Monday, days after allegedly posting an image of a racist ideology on social media. (David Guralnick/Detroit News via AP)

Schriver, who represents portions of Oakland and Macomb counties, can vote on the House floor. But Tate removed him from a committee and told the House Business Office to oversee his staff members, who still can assist constituents.

"Representative Schriver has a history of promoting debunked theories and dangerous rhetoric that jeopardizes the safety of Michigan residents and contributes to a hostile and uncomfortable environment for others," Tate said.

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A message seeking comment from Schriver wasn't immediately returned. He defended his social media post last week.

"I’m opposed to racists, race baiters and victim politics," Schriver told The Detroit News. "What I find strange is the agenda to demoralize and reduce the white portion of our population."

Schriver was elected to a two-year term in 2022. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, released a statement Friday calling his post "abhorrent rhetoric."

"We will never let those who stoke racial fears divide us," she said.