Gov. RIck Scott, who is being recruited by Trump to run against Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson, stopped just short of a blanket denouncement of the president’s comments by saying he condemned them “if” the media reports about them were true. | Getty Scott denounces Trump’s ‘shithole’ Haiti comments as Democrats see opportunity

MIAMI — Gov. Rick Scott distanced himself Thursday from President Donald Trump’s undisputed comments calling Haiti and some African nations “shithole” countries — remarks that Democrats say could cost him if he runs for U.S. Senate.

Scott, who is being recruited by Trump to run against Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson, stopped just short of a blanket denouncement of the president’s comments by saying he condemned them “if” the media reports about them were true. Neither the White House nor a fellow Florida Republican who was in the room during an immigration reform meeting disputed the president's racial remarks.


“If this report is true, it is absolutely wrong to say or think this,” Scott said in a written statement. “I do not think this way, nor do I agree with this kind of sentiment. I represent Florida, and we are an amazing melting pot where over 250 languages are spoken.”

“I work every day to make this the most welcoming state for everyone — Haitians, Cubans, Venezuelans, and others from all around the world that call Florida home,” Scott said. “I’m incredibly proud of our diversity.”

Florida is home to an estimated 305,000 foreign-born Haitians — at least 106,000 of whom were registered to vote in 2016, according to research by Daniel A. Smith, a University of Florida political scientist.

He estimated in 2016 that their turnout rate was 75 percent, the statewide average. The number of voters of Haitian descent in Florida is higher than the number of Haitian-born voters, but there are no hard statistics.

Democrats, noting that Trump’s administration is allowing for the deportation of 58,700 Haitians who are losing their Temporary Protected Status said there’s room to register tens of thousands of more Haitian-American voters as Trump fires up the community.

“Rick Scott has been one of Donald Trump’s most ardent and consistent supporters. No matter how much he panders to the Haitian-American voters in Florida, they won’t ignore the disrespect and racism they’ve experienced,” said Evan Ross, a Democratic consultant for numerous Haitian-American candidates.

“[Sen.] Bill Nelson has been a consistent supporter of TPS and relief for Haiti,” Ross said. “They won’t forget that when they go to the polls in November.”

Nelson was more circumspect, saying in a written statement: “The President should represent all of the people, not just some selected favorites, and should treat others with respect and dignity. These are American values and this White House has strayed from them.”

Though the number of Haitian-American voters is small relative to the nearly 14 million voters on the rolls, Florida has a history of razor-thin elections. In his two successful races, Scott did not win a majority of the vote; he was re-elected by just 1 percentage point in 2014, or by 64,145 votes.

The latest polls show Scott and Nelson are virtually tied in a potential matchup in a state where the presidency was decided in 2000 by 537 votes.

Trump didn’t win a majority of the vote, either, when he carried Florida in 2016. During the campaign, Trump recognized the importance of the Haitian-American vote in September of 2016 when he came to Miami and met with Haitian-Americans.

“Whether you vote for me or not I really want to be your biggest champion,” Trump said at the time.

But Trump’s pitch didn’t appear to work, according to Smith’s analysis. In precincts with more than 100 Haitian-born voters, about 90 percent voted for Democrat Hillary Clinton.

Trump has since moved to end TPS status for Haitians, allegedly said Haitians "all had AIDS" and, now, reportedly called the nation a “shithole” during a White House meeting. POLITICO reported that Trump said the U.S. needs more immigrants from places like Norway.

“We need more people from Norway,” Trump said, according to the people familiar with the meeting. Trump met with Norwegian prime minister Erna Solberg earlier this week.

Trump's remarks provoked a visceral response from Haitian-Americans.

"The President's ongoing war against immigrants appears to be solely directed toward those immigrants of color," state Sen. Daphne Campbell, a Miami Democrat and the only Haitian-American member of the Florida Legislature, said in a written statement. "I am appalled and disgusted that the man who stands as the symbol of a nation once offering refuge and sanctuary to all immigrants is doing his best to say: 'non-whites need not apply.'”

Campbell called on Scott to denounce the remarks, which he subsequently did.

Sen. Marco Rubio, who lives Miami-Dade County — home to one of the nation's largest concentrations of Haitian Americans — could not be reached for comment. After Trump’s comments were first reported by the Washington Post and then other media outlets, Rubio discussed immigration on his Twitter feed but did not address Trump’s comments.

The White House did not deny Trump made the remarks.

“Certain Washington politicians choose to fight for foreign countries, but President Trump will always fight for the American people,” White House spokesperson Raj Shah said in a statement.

Trump's comments came during a White House meeting about immigration reform with members of Congress, including Miami Republican Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, who would neither confirm nor deny that Trump used the slur.

“Why are we having all these people from shithole countries come here?” Trump said, according to the Washington Post.

Diaz-Balart said he didn’t want to distract from the issue at hand: fixing the immigration status of young people protected from deportation under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals status.

“There are almost 800,000 young DACA beneficiaries who are facing imminent deportation in March if we don’t reach a deal,” he said. “I’m not going to be diverted from all possible efforts to continue to negotiate to reach a deal. So statements at the eleventh hour are not going to distract me.”

Former Gov. Jeb Bush, a fellow Republican who challenged Trump for the presidency in 2016 along with Rubio, said on Twitter that “for every one step forward @POTUS takes when it comes to judgment and good, coherent policy decisions, he Inexplicably and without fail takes ten steps back. I hope today’s comments were just a crass and flippant mistake, and do not reflect the hateful racism they imply.”

“We need comprehensive immigration reform that reflects our values as a country and recognizes our economic needs,” Bush said. “This requires a merit-based system that attracts talented, freedom-loving individuals from across the globe, whether they are from Haiti, Norway or anywhere else.”