Fox News host Dana Perino shared a historical perspective on Monday’s “The Five” in an attempt to refute a claim tweeted by New York Democratic Socialist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez over the weekend.
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Perino was specifically responding to Ocasio-Cortez’s tweet — following the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh on Saturday — which described the Electoral College system as “a shadow of slavery’s power on America” while calling for it to be abolished.
It is well past time we eliminate the Electoral College, a shadow of slavery’s power on America today that undermines our nation as a democratic republic. https://t.co/00HZN3MI6F
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@Ocasio2018) October 6, 2018
Perino argued that the Electoral College helped to put an end to slavery in America.
“Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweeted this weekend that the Electoral College is racist,” Perino explained. “She suggested the founding fathers wanted to protect slavery and that’s why they came up with the idea of the Electoral College. That’s not true. There is no evidence of that at all. Abraham Lincoln, who was the president that ended slavery, he did not win the popular vote. He got 37% but he won in the Electoral College. Thank goodness for the Electoral College that helped end slavery.”
Co-host Jesse Watters chimed in, saying that if America was to put an end to all institutions that were rooted in slavery, it would require the elimination of the Democratic Party. “The Republican Party ended slavery,” he said.
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