Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith's campaign over the past week has been reeling from a video posted in which she said that if she were invited by one of her supporters to a "public hanging," she would be in "the front row." | AP Photo/Evan Vucci White House Trump tries to shore up Hyde-Smith as controversy swirls around her Senate bid

President Donald Trump continued to throw his support behind Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi on Monday, as her campaign tries to recover from recent controversial statements she's made.

"[email protected] loves Mississippi and our Great U.S.A," the president commented on a retweet promoting a rally he is hosting for Hyde-Smith on Nov. 26.


Hyde-Smith, who was appointed by Gov. Phil Bryant in March to fill retired GOP Sen. Thad Cochran’s seat, is facing a runoff against Democrat Mike Espy to finish out the remaining two years of Cochran's term.

The president will be hosting two rallies on Nov. 26, one in Tupelo and another in Biloxi. Trump has bragged about how his appearances for candidates helped push them over the line in the midterm elections earlier this month.

However, Hyde-Smith's campaign over the past week has been reeling from a video posted in which she said that if she were invited by one of her supporters to a "public hanging," she would be in "the front row." Hyde-Smith's opponent, Espy, is African-American.

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She's also been criticized for another comment she made implying she wants to make it more difficult for liberals to vote.

"There's a lot of liberal folks in those other schools who that maybe we don't want to vote. Maybe we want to make it just a little more difficult. So, I think that's a great idea," she said in a video posted last week. Her campaign later said the senator was joking.

Hyde-Smith's comments come as Democrats have accused the GOP of attempting to suppress the voting rights of minority groups across the country, especially in Southern states, where there has been a history of racial tension and voter discrimination.