A male reporter repeatedly badgered Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao Tuesday night during a press conference about infrastructure.
But he didn’t badger her about her infrastructure plans — he badgered her about her skin color, which the reporter tried to tie to this past weekend’s violence between far-left antifa activists and far-right alt-right members.
Secretary Chao, who is married to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, spoke briefly following a Trump press conference on infrastructure Tuesday where reporters focused almost entirely on his reaction to violence at a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville.
The reporter, whose name is not known, repeatedly pressed the female transportation secretary about her skin color.
“Secretary Chao, as a woman of color,” the reporter began, “what do you think about the Nazi support for President Trump?”
“Well what the president has already said is that it is intolerable, we are a country of tolerance and it is hateful behavior and it is not who we are as Americans,” Chao said. The reporter kept pressing on whether it bothered Chao “to see Nazis supporting this administration.”
“We are here to talk about infrastructure today…” was all Chao was able to say before the male reporter interrupted her. “I’m talking about Nazis,” he insisted.
“I’m here to talk about infrastructure,” she shot back. “And I’m here with the president to talk about infrastructure.”
The questioner immediately preceding Chao, a female reporter, similarly asked Chao about President Trump’s criticisms of her husband, rather than about Chao’s policy plans.
AUDIO: (The male reporter’s questioning begins around 3:40)