Presidential Candidate Tim Scott Would Qualify for Reparations, but Doesn’t Want Them

Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), who launched his 2024 presidential campaign on Monday, is a descendant of slaves who would theoretically qualify for reparations, were such a program ever to be enacted. But he does not want them.

Scott noted in 2020, according to the Associated Press, that he was “‘the son of a son of a son of a slave,'” a descendant of a West African family who arrived in the U.S. aboard a slave ship, probably in Charleston, South Carolina, two centuries ago.” Yet he has opposed reparations for slavery.

In 2019, The Hill reported:

Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), the only African American Republican in the Senate, says reparations for slavery are a “non-starter.”

Scott said Wednesday that it would be too difficult to calculate who deserves compensation and who must pay for the institution of slavery and the years of discriminatory laws that followed its abolition.

“There’s no question that slavery is a scourge on the history of America. The question is: Is reparations a realistic path forward? The answer is no,” Scott said.

Scott has championed other legislation to advance the prosperity of black Americans. Under President Donald Trump, he pushed for the creation of Opportunity Zones, areas in inner cities offering tax and regulatory benefits for investment. He also co-sponsored the First Step Act on criminal justice reform, working with Democrats to ensure its passage.

In addition, Scott proposed police reforms in the wake of the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. However, his bill was filibustered by Democrats, who feared Scott’s bill would pass, and preferred to rally political support behind their own, radical bill, with never passed into law.

Democrats have pushed reparations as a national issue since the 2019-20 presidential race. Several “blue” states and cities have passed reparations, or are considering them, despite being “free” states before the Civil War.

Scott has said that he has been the target of racist attacks from Democrats due to his conservative views and life experience. “The truth of my life disproves their lies,” he said in his campaign launch speech on Monday.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the new biography, Rhoda: ‘Comrade Kadalie, You Are Out of Order’. He is also the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.