"I Cannot Believe How Incredibly Stupid This Country Has Become": This Trump Nominee Was Asked To Define "White Culture," And Things Got Awkward So Quickly

Donald Trump’s State Department nominee, Jeremy Carl, recently answered questions before the Senate and had several uncomfortable moments after his past comments about “White culture” were raised. A man in a suit and tie speaks at a formal hearing, seated at a table with a nameplate and water bottles. Audience members listen attentively One interaction in particular went viral after Senator Chris Murphy asked Carl to define “White identity.” A person in a suit speaks, gesturing with hands, at a formal setting with a nameplate reading "Mr. Murphy" visible. A camera is in the foreground

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Here’s Carl’s painfully awkward response:

@ChrisMurphyCT / Via Twitter: @ChrisMurphyCT

You can watch the full questioning here.

“Certain types of um, Anglo-derived culture that comes from our history,” Carl responded. Man in a suit speaks at a hearing, sitting at a panel table with a nameplate reading "Mr. Jeremy Carl."

“Like what?” Murphy asked again. A person in a suit and tie speaks at a formal event, sitting at a table with a nameplate marked "Mr. Murphy." Carl paused for a moment and said, “Um, let me think about this.” Man in a suit speaking and sitting with a serious expression during a formal hearing. Name placard reads "Mr. Jeremy Carl." “Uh, you know, Senator, I would say if you were to look at the book by one of your Senate colleagues, ‘Born Fighting,’ the sort of Scotch-Irish military culture. Certain, you know, pride that went with that. That would be one example,” Carl continued. @ChrisMurphyCT / Via Twitter: @ChrisMurphyCT

Murphy interjected, “You’re now retreating to ethnic identity. You don’t speak about ethnic identity, you speak about white identity. So tell me the values that stitch together ‘white identity,’ and make it different than Black identity?” he asked, firmly. Man in a suit and tie speaks energetically, gesturing with one hand during a formal event. Nameplate reads "Mr. Murphy."

“I would say that the white church is very different than the Black church in terms of its tone and style, on average. Um, food ways could also be different. Music could be different,” Carl responded. Man in a suit with a tie speaks passionately at a hearing. Nameplate reads "Mr. Jeremy Carl" as nominee for a Secretary role in International Organizations “And those are being erased?” Murphy asked. Person speaking at a formal event, wearing a suit and striped tie, seated at a table with a nameplate labeled "Mr. Murphy." “Well, if you look at the Super Bowl halftime show, which was not in English this year,” Carl responded. A man in a suit appears twice in a split image. Both instances show him sitting at a panel or hearing. A nameplate reads "Mr. Jeremy Carl."

“So our ability to access white churches, or white food, or white music is being erased?” Murphy asked, chuckling. A person in a suit speaks at a podium in two similar images, likely during a formal event or meeting, with a nameplate visible

Carl, visibly uncomfortable, then said: “I am concerned with the majority of common American culture that we had for some time, that through particularly mass immigration, I think has become much more balkanized, and I think that weakens us…I’m not apologizing for it.” A man in a suit and tie is speaking at a formal hearing, labeled as "Mr. Jeremy Carl," seated at a table with microphones “I think you’re struggling to answer this question, right, because underlying your beliefs is a sentiment that white culture is just simply better,” Murphy pointed out.People in the replies are like: Comment from Stuart day guitars: "This is painful to watch." “I cannot believe how incredibly stupid this country has become.” @chrismurphyct via TikTok / Via tiktok.com

Another person applauded Senator Murphy’s line of questioning that pressed Carl on the issue. Tweet by Molly Jong-Fast: "It's so important to drill down on these ideas so you can reveal how deeply stupid they are." @MollyJongFast / Via x.com“Put this clip in a museum,” another person said. Tweet about online personas, describing a person struggling to defend themselves face-to-face, highlighting a disconnect between online and real-life demeanor @billybinion/ / Via x.comAnd finally, this person said, “Racism is mostly an emotional reflex. Trying to rationalize it in front of intelligent people doesn’t go well.” Tweet discussing how nativists struggle to rationalize concerns about the Great Replacement, noting racism as an emotional reflex What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.