Trump backs Mississippi GOP Sen. Hyde-Smith after controversial comments, says 'she's going to win'
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President Trump is standing by Mississippi Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith as she faces public condemnation for a controversial comment she made earlier this month, saying he believes “she’s going to win” her upcoming Senate race.
Speaking to reporters before heading to Mar-a-Lago for Thanksgiving, Trump was asked about a remark Senator Hyde-Smith made on Nov. 2 in regard to attending a “public hanging.”
“She’s a great senator. She came in, she’s done a fantastic job in a short period of time,” the president said. “She made a statement which I know she feels very badly about it, and it was just sort of said in jest, as she said.”
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The Republican senator was captured on video saying if she were invited by one of her supporters to a "public hanging," she would be in "the front row.”
WALMART ASKS FOR CONTRIBUTION BACK FROM MISSISSIPPI GOP SEN. HYDE-SMITH AFTER CONTROVERSIAL COMMENTS
She has denied any racial connotation, and in a statement said that she used “an exaggerated expression of regard” when talking about accepting an invitation to a speaking engagement.
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In a televised debate Tuesday night against Democratic opponent Mike Espy, a former secretary of agriculture, Hyde-Smith further clarified the context of her remarks, saying she was speaking to a supporter who'd lost both parents to cancer while still in high school.
"To express my deep regard and sincere commitment to this young man, I used a phrase, I told him that I would fight a circle saw for him. Well obviously I would not stick my arm in a circle saw nor did any of my comments ever mean that I would enjoy any type of capital punishment sitting there witnessing this," she said.
"I also recognize that this comment was twisted and it was turned into a weapon to be used against me, a political weapon used for nothing but personal and political gain by my opponent. That’s the type of politics Mississippians are sick and tired of," Hyde-Smith continued.
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Espy called the remarks a "black eye" on the state.
But Trump defended the incumbent on Tuesday calling her "a tremendous woman and it’s a shame that she has to go through this."
Hyde-Smith was appointed in April to fill retired Republican Sen. Thad Cochran's seat. She will face off with Espy in a special election on Nov. 27.
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Despite the overwhelming public outrage, Trump believes Hyde-Smith will win the election.
“Cindy Hyde-Smith is a tremendous woman who truly loves the people of Mississippi and our country, and I think she’s going to win.”
He told reporters he will hold campaign rallies for her on Monday.
Fox News’ Andrew O’Reilly contributed to this report.