(Richmond Times-Dispatch) — Photo caption: Del. Luke Torian, D-Prince William, became emotional in a floor speech criticizing last week’s speech by Del. Nick Freitas, R-Culpeper. Torian and others in the black caucus objected to Freitas’ points on guns, abortion and slavery.
Del. Nick Freitas, R-Culpeper, was riding a wave of national publicity Monday after a fiery pro-gun speech last week that several African-American Democrats condemned as racially insensitive for its references to poverty and slavery.
Freitas — one of several Republicans running to take on U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., this fall — appeared on the Fox News program “Fox and Friends” on Monday morning to recap his speech, an attempt to turn the tables on House Democrats who had been blasting the GOP for inaction in response to a school shooting in Parkland, Fla. A video of the speech Freitas posted on Facebook on Friday had drawn 11 million views as of Monday afternoon after being shared by pro-gun rocker Ted Nugent and U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., a Freitas backer.
During Monday’s floor session, Del. Lamont Bagby, D-Henrico, the chairman of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus, called Freitas’ comments “hateful and divisive,” adding that he wanted to put all legislators on notice that “our heritage will not be used as a political football.”
Click to continue reading. By GRAHAM MOOMAW, Richmond Times-Dispatch, Mar 5, 2018.