Texas State Rep. Gene Wu, a Democrat who chairs the Texas House Democratic Caucus, faced backlash after comments he made on a December 2024 podcast resurfaced on social media.
Wu’s remarks came from a Dec. 31, 2024 episode of “Define American with Jose Antonio Vargas.” The clip was reposted Saturday night on X by the account End Wokeness, where it quickly gained traction and amassed more than 12.5 million views. The comments drew criticism from several prominent figures, including Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
During the interview, which occurred nearly two months after the 2024 presidential election, Wu discussed divisions among minority communities in the United States.
“I think you’ve hit exactly the right point. And it’s not just Latinos. It’s not just Asians. It’s not just African Americans. It’s everybody. It’s everywhere,” Wu told Vargas. “Our country—and the powers that be—have spent tremendous time, effort, and money to make sure those groups are never united, that they always see each other as enemies or competitors, without ever realizing that they share one thing in common: their oppressors are all the same.”
He continued, “The oppression comes from one place. I always tell people the day the Latino, African American, Asian, and other communities realize that they share the same oppressor is the day we start winning. Because we are the majority in this country now. We have the ability to take over this country and do what is needed for everyone and to make things fair. But the problem is our communities are divided. They’re completely divided.”
The resurfaced comments prompted sharp criticism from Republicans. Zach Kraft, a spokesman for the Republican National Committee, called the remarks “disgusting” and accused Democrats of remaining silent.
“These disgusting comments are wokeness at its worst, and the silence is deafening from Democrats,” Kraft told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “Look no further than the Senate primary to see how the woke mind virus has spread like wildfire among the ranks of Texas Democrats.”
Kraft also referenced other Texas Democrats, saying, “James Talarico spent last week apologizing for his ‘white privilege,’ and Jasmine Crockett is taking a page out of Kamala Harris’ playbook by preemptively blaming racism and sexism for why she will lose.”
The interview occurred shortly after President Donald Trump’s victory over then–Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election. According to CNN exit polls, Trump received 46% of the Hispanic vote, 40% of the Asian vote, and 13% of the Black vote in 2024. In 2020, he received 32% of Hispanic voters, 34% of Asian voters, and 12% of Black voters. In 2016, CNN exit polls showed Trump receiving 28% of the Hispanic vote, 27% of the Asian vote, and 8% of the Black vote.