Maryland's lieutenant governor is coming under fire for a comment about recent acts of racism and hatred in the state.
News media outlets reported Republican Lt. Gov. Boyd Rutherford has been criticized for saying in a tweet that hate is not "new," and he would rather people "show their real colors than hide."
Rutherford's tweet was in response to state Democratic Sen. Cheryl Kagan. Kagan was criticizing Rutherford for not linking an uptick in race-based incidents to the election of Donald Trump.
#Shocked by Lt Gov @BoydKRutherford's response to @ShaareTorahGbrg's Rabbi about hate crimes. He's perplexed by the increase. #Trump pic.twitter.com/qM4WY8hLvk — Cheryl C. Kagan (@CherylKagan) December 1, 2016
@CherylKagan @ShaareTorahGbrg You act as though hate is new. It was always there. I'd rather people show their real colors than hide. — Boyd Rutherford (@BoydKRutherford) December 1, 2016
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Kagan told The Washington Post that Rutherford's tweet was "remarkably offensive."
A spokeswoman for Rutherford said he condemns all acts of racism and hatred. She said he was stating that racism and racial tensions "have been issues facing our nation for hundreds of years."