Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers have apologised amid backlash over their comments discouraging people from supporting Democratic politician Jasmine Crockett.
The contentious comments came during a recent episode of Yang and Rogers’ popular podcast Las Culturistas, which typically covers pop culture but veered into political territory with its latest episode.
Rogers said he is turned off “anytime a politician is making it too obviously about themselves”, which prompted the pair to discuss Crockett — a progressive congresswoman from Texas’ 30th District — in light of her just-launched campaign for Senate.
“Don’t waste your money sending to Jasmine Crockett. Do not do it. Don’t do it. You’re going to waste your money,” Rogers said.
Agreeing with the sentiment, Yang also discouraged visitors from donating to Crockett’s campaign because money is “hard enough to come by” these days, before pivoting the conversation to presidential hopeful Gavin Newsom, who the pair also disapproved of.
The reaction was swift. Many listeners criticised what they deemed to be racially motivated comments about a Black woman being unelectable, with some saying the discussion was “super disappointing” and “not helpful” in getting Texas voters to engage with the election.
The comments were particularly inflammatory given that neither co-host is from Texas, where Crockett has enjoyed steady popularity with progressive and left-leaning voters for her fierce opposition to the policies of the Donald Trump administration.
“So Bowen Yang is going to act like he and Matt Rogers didn’t completely disrespect Jasmine Crockett and display some serious anti-Blackness,” one X user wrote, while another accused the pair of “running their mouths about a state they know nothing about and candidates they know nothing about”.
Rogers backtracked on his comments with an apology shared to his Instagram Stories, saying he “cares deeply” about Democratic candidates winning elections.
“I’m a very progressive person who cares deeply about winning these elections, but my phrasing was not right. I will be more thoughtful! I really do promise. I have great respect and admiration for Rep. Crockett, and I regret that my words suggested otherwise,” Rogers wrote.
Rogers added that he simply “want[s] us to win”, before Yang reshared the post on his own Stories with another apology. “[I] should not have cursorily weighed in on this. Understanding the platform and will use it more responsibly,” Yang wrote.
Crockett has not responded to the podcasters’ comments.
It comes after Yang opened up on Las Culturistas about his abrupt departure as a castmate on Saturday Night Live, saying he felt it was time to leave because “there was no range” in the roles he played on the sketch show.
Lead images: YouTube and X
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