WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Chairs of the Congressional Tri-Caucus—Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) Chair Rep. Yvette Clarke (NY-09), Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) Chair Rep. Grace Meng (NY-06) and Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) Chair Rep. Adriano Espaillat (NY-13)—along with House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Whip Katherine Clark and Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar released the following joint statement on Rep. Nancy Mace’s resolution that would effectively abolish the Congressional Tri-Caucus, among other groups:

“Nancy Mace rose to infamy for her cheap political stunts, and this is just the latest distraction from her failed primary and complete inability to deliver for her constituents. Members of Congress have every right to organize around shared policy priorities and the constituencies they serve. There are dozens of bipartisan congressional caucuses dedicated to ethnic communities, geographic regions, industries, veterans, faith traditions and countless other interests. Singling out the Congressional Tri-Caucus—which represents nearly half of all Americans—is racist and a shameless attempt to silence the voices of minorities.

“The Tri-Caucus does not need a lecture about what constitutes federally sanctioned segregation—least of all from a member who has repeatedly made racist and bigoted comments about minority communities over the course of her tenure in Congress.

“The Congressional Tri-Caucus was formed to address the needs and concerns of Asian, Black, Hispanic, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander American communities that are too often ignored in the halls of power. These caucuses existed long before Nancy Mace arrived in Congress, and will remain long after she fades into irrelevancy.”

###