Nevada Lawmaker Says He Would Vote For Slavery
Nevada assemblyman Jim Wheeler told a crowd in Storey County, “Yeah, I would” vote for slavery.
During the event, which took place in August, Wheeler stated to a group of Republicans, “If that’s what they wanted, I’d have to hold my nose, I’d have to bite my tongue and they’d probably have to hold a gun to my head, but yeah, if that’s what the citizens of the, if that’s what the constituency wants that elected me, that’s what they elected me for.”
The assemblyman was responding to a question posed by a blogger as to whether or not he would vote for something unconstitutional if the people wanted it.
Wheeler told the Nevada Sun that he would not in fact vote for anything that legalizes human slavery and that he was exaggerating to prove his dedication as an elected official saying, “I don’t care if every constituent in (Assembly) District 39 wanted slavery, I wouldn’t vote for it. That’s ridiculous.” He also went on to say that he does regret making the remark and sincerely apologizes to anyone he offended.
The video clip from August was made public recently when an employee from the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada tweeted about the slavery remark. The employee was originally reviewing the footage to hear Wheeler’s comments regarding the mining industry.
Wheeler’s own party members have come out against his remarks including Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval and U.S. Senator Dean Heller.
