我希望能看到那些共和党当选官员站出来谴责博·弗伦奇并撤销对他的支持。这位竞选德克萨斯州铁路委员会要职的共和党人，如今被曝出多年来在社交媒体上多次发文呼吁将政治对手公开处决，其中包括前总统奥巴马。CNN旗下的“KFile”调查团队最近发现，过去几年里有大量此类帖子要么被弗伦奇自行删除，要么因违反X平台规则而被移除。
I’m looking for elected Republican officials to condemn Bo French and rescind their endorsements. The Texas Republican running for the powerful Railroad Commission has now been exposed for years of social media posts calling for the public execution of political opponents, including former President Obama. A recent investigation from CNN’s “KFile” team found a slew of posts either deleted by French or removed for violating X’s rules over the past few years.
在去年发布的一篇帖子中，弗伦奇写道：“我想要的不仅仅是让罪犯当众游街示众，我希望看到公开处决。”其他帖子还提到了绞刑与绞架。在德克萨斯州这样一个地方，如果有人竞选公职却屡屡用绞刑和公开处决这类词汇来攻击政治对手，甚至针对一位非裔前总统，那这种行为显然会引发所有人的担忧。德克萨斯州本身就有骇人听闻的私刑历史：该州有记录的最后一起暴民私刑发生在1942年7月，受害者是威廉·文森——那其实不算很久以前的事；此后该州还发生过更多出于种族动机的仇恨犯罪，比如1998年在贾斯珀发生的詹姆斯·伯德遇害案，历史学家与民权组织均认定此案属于现代版的私刑。
In one post from last year, French wrote, “I want more than perp walks. I want public executions.”Other posts invoked hanging and gallows. If you are a person running for elected office in Texas, of all places, and you repeatedly use the language of hanging and public execution against political opponents, including a Black former president, that should be problematic for everyone. Texas has its own horrific history with lynching. The last mob lynching recorded in Texas was William Vinson in July 1942 — that wasn’t that long ago — and the state has seen even more recent racially motivated hate crimes, like the murder of James Byrd Jr. in Jasper in 1998, which is widely recognized by historians and civil rights organizations as a modern-day lynching.
任何使用此类言论的人都应被取消担任公职的资格。不过，这仅仅是弗伦奇可耻行径的一部分而已。他还曾攻击伊斯兰教，询问追随者犹太人与穆斯林谁对美国构成更大威胁；称没有孩子的女性自私；还针对德克萨斯大学橄榄球赛场上来自不同族裔的学生群体发表了种族主义言论，称这种现象是个“问题”。参议员约翰·科宁称弗伦奇“是共和党的耻辱”；共和党策略专家卡尔·罗夫则更直言不讳，表示自己会投票给弗伦奇的民主党对手。
Anyone who uses this language should be disqualified from public office. But still that is only one part of French’s shameful record. French has also attacked Islam, asked followers whether Jews or Muslims are the bigger threat to America, called childless women selfish, and made that racist post about the diverse student section at a University of Texas football game, describing it as a “problem.”Sen. John Cornyn called French “an embarrassment to the Republican Party.”Republican strategist Karl Rove went even further, saying he would vote for French’s Democratic opponent.
当那些谋求公权力的人屡屡使用带有种族主义色彩的言辞，甚至提及绞刑与处决时，公众完全有理由追问这些言论意在传达什么——尤其是对那些深谙此类表述在美国及得克萨斯州历史上意味着什么的黑人民众而言。然而，尽管部分共和党人对此表示谴责，像得克萨斯州州长格雷格·阿博特、司法部长肯·帕克斯顿以及该州共和党这样的关键人物与机构，却并未公开撤回对这位极端恶劣候选人的支持。
When someone seeking public power repeatedly reaches for the language of racism, gallows and hanging, people are entitled to ask what that rhetoric communicates — especially to Black Texans, who know exactly what those images have meant in this country and in that state. And yet, despite some Republican condemnation, the most necessary voices that endorsed such a terrible candidate, like Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Attorney General Ken Paxton and the state Republican Party, have not publicly rescinded their support for French.
究竟是什么在阻碍他们这么做呢？今年夏天，民主党人就曾面临类似问题。当时格雷厄姆·普拉特纳身负严重的性侵指控，众多民主党人士随即撤销对他的支持并敦促其退出竞选；最终普拉特纳也选择了退选。是非对错分明，政党也绝非无能为力的旁观者。给予支持是一种选择，更是一种信号，表明一个政党愿意与谁站在一起。
What’s the hold up? Democrats faced that question with Graham Platner this summer. After serious sexual-assault allegations, prominent Democrats withdrew their endorsements and called on him to leave the race; Platner ultimately withdrew. Right is right, wrong is wrong. Political parties are not powerless spectators. Endorsements are choices. They are signals about who a party is willing to stand beside.
因此，倘若共和党领袖们确实认为弗伦奇的言论带有种族主义色彩且不可接受，那么他们就不该仅停留在发布新闻稿或措辞谨慎的社交媒体声明上。应当施加压力迫使弗伦奇退选，并正式撤销对他的支持。林赛·格兰杰是NewsNation的撰稿人，也是《The Hill》评论节目《Rising》的联合主持人。本文为她在节目中所作评论的编辑整理版。
So if Republican leaders believe French’s rhetoric is racist and unacceptable, the standard should not stop at a press release or a carefully worded social media statement. Pressure him to drop out, and rescind your endorsements. Lindsey Granger is a NewsNation contributor and co-host of The Hill’s commentary show “Rising.”This column is an edited transcription of her on-air commentary.