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Who is Eli Crane? GOP Congressman branded ‘racist’ for calling Black Americans ‘colored people’ on House floor

'You can keep playing around these games with diversity, equity, and inclusion. But there are some real threats out there,' Eli Crane said

WASHINGTON, DC: A representative from Arizona's 2nd congressional district is currently under fire for calling Black Americans “colored people” during a House Floor debate. Rep Eli Crane has reportedly proposed a change to a yearly defense policy bill, which would put a ban on factors like “race, gender, religion, or political affiliations, or any other ideological concepts as the sole basis for recruitment, training education, promotion, or retention decisions.”

The 43-year-old politician said, as reported by The Daily Beast, “My amendment has nothing to do with whether or not colored people, or Black people, or anyone can serve, okay? It has nothing to do with [the] color of your skin, any of that stuff. What we want to preserve and maintain is the fact that our military does not become a social experiment.”

‘There are some real threats out there’

He went on to explain, “We want the best of the best, we want to have standards. I’m going to tell you, guys, right now, the Russians, the Chinese, the Iranians, the North Koreans, they are not doing this because they want the strongest military possible. I hope my colleagues on the other side can understand what we’re doing.”

“I am going to tell you guys this right now: You can keep playing around these games with diversity, equity, and inclusion. But there are some real threats out there. And if we keep messing around and we keep lowering our standards, it’s not going to be good,” the Republican asserted.

‘I will not tolerate such racist and repugnant words’

Rep Joyce Beatty (D-OH), a Black woman, fired back at him, saying, “I find it offensive and very inappropriate. I am asking for unanimous consent to take down the words referring to me or any of my colleagues as colored people.” She added, “I’ve asked for unanimous consent, Mr Speaker, to have the words stricken. I didn’t ask for an amendment.”

The 73-year-old also took to Twitter to express her frustration as she stated, “I am still in utter shock and disbelief that a Republican uttered the words ‘colored people’ in reference to African-American service members who sacrifice their lives for our freedom. I will not tolerate such racist and repugnant words in the House Chamber or anywhere in Congress. That’s why I asked that those words be stricken from the record, which was done so by unanimous consent.”

“This just happened on the floor of the United States House of Representatives. A House Republican just referred to Black Americans serving in our military as ‘colored people.’ In 2023,” Rep Don Beyer tweeted. A user commented, “Let that racist keep on talking, I am sure he would find out when he walks into a group of black folks or into a predominantly black community and says “colored people” like it is a fun word. I am sure he/she will find out then.”

Another user added, “I think this demands a resignation. If Congressman Eli Crane used that racist word on the House floor, can you imagine the even worse words he uses in private?”

Who is Eli Crane?

As per his website, Crane is “a combat veteran, small-business owner, husband, father, and native Arizonan.” It also notes that he “went on five wartime deployments, three of them to the Middle East with SEAL Team 3, and served our country for 13 years.”

The site describes him as a family man, who is faith-oriented, “pro-life, pro-second amendment, and unafraid to take a stand against cancel culture and the radical left.” “He is active in Arizona as a brand ambassador for Sig Sauer firearms and as a former member of the National Advisory Committee on Veteran Business Affairs,” it adds.