Win McNamee via Getty Images Former Vice President Joe Biden and House Majority Whip James Clyburn share a moment at South Carolina's annual “World Famous Fish Fry."

COLUMBIA, S.C. ― Former Vice President Joe Biden faced a torrent of criticism from his Democratic opponents and elsewhere this week after he evoked his past working relationships with two well-known segregationists as proof of a time when politics had more “civility.” Sen. Kamala Harris said she was “deeply” concerned by Biden’s comments. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said they showed Biden was “out of step with the values of the modern Democratic Party.” Warren said while she would not criticize her fellow Democrats, it was “never OK to celebrate segregationists.” Sen. Cory Booker demanded an apology. Miles White, 61, would like Biden to explain himself a bit more. But he doesn’t think Biden’s comments were malicious, and he certainly isn’t ready to take Biden out of his list of top presidential candidates. “At this point, I give him the benefit of the doubt,” White said. “I don’t think he meant them the way they came out.” White, a black man, was one of thousands of South Carolinians who attended House Majority Whip James Clyburn’s “World Famous Fish Fry” in the state capital on Friday evening. The annual event drew more than 20 Democratic presidential candidates, who each hoped to win over not only South Carolina voters, but also Clyburn, the highest ranking African American in Congress.

Associated Press

For now, Biden remains the clear front-runner in South Carolina, where Democratic primary voters are predominantly black. He received the support of 37% those surveyed for a recent state poll, down from May but still far ahead of Warren, who trailed in a distant second at 17%. Biden played up his South Carolina bona fides on Friday. He referred to Clyburn as the “highest ranking African American in the history of the United States of America, other than the guy I worked with for eight years,” and noted it was his third time at the fish fry and that he has already been all over the state. “It seems like I’ve lived in South Carolina,” Biden added. At the fish fry, voters seemed largely excited for and forgiving of Biden. At the start of the event, Biden received one of the largest applauses of the night. Afterward, he took selfies long into the night. In between, he told the crowd that the Democratic Party had to remain united throughout the primary process. “Whoever the Democratic nominee is, we have to stay together and elect a Democrat,” he told the crowd. The message was clear. Throughout the campaign, Biden has argued party infighting would only benefit Trump in the long run. But days before, Biden caused widespread anger after he referenced the former segregationist senators Herman Talmadge and James O. Eastland at a New York City fundraiser, saying they “didn’t agree on much of anything” but “got things done” anyway. “At least there was some civility,” he said. “But today, you look at the other side and you’re the enemy ― not the opposition, the enemy. We don’t talk to each other anymore.” The comments dominated the news cycle for the rest of the week. Booker took particular issue with Biden’s comment that Eastland ― who was an openlyracist Mississippi senator ― referred to Biden as “son,” not “boy.” “You don’t joke about calling black men ‘boys.’ Men like James O. Eastland used words like that, and the racist policies that accompanied them, to perpetuate white supremacy and strip black Americans of our very humanity,” said Booker. “I have to tell Vice President Biden, as someone I respect, that he is wrong for using his relationships with Eastland and Talmadge as examples of how to bring our country together.” Various members of the campaign contended Biden was making a broader point about getting things done in Washington and highlighted Biden’s civil rights record. Symone Sanders, a senior adviser to Joe Biden, called Biden’s critics “disingenuous” on Twitter.

.@JoeBiden did not praise a segregationist. That is a disingenuous take. He basically said sometimes in Congress, one has to work with terrible or down right racist folks to get things done. And then went on to say when you can't work with them, work around them. — Symone D. Sanders (@SymoneDSanders) June 19, 2019