Sen. Dick Durbin said Monday that those Republican senators denying President Trump’s vulgar remarks are trying to “rescue” the White House.
“They know better,” Mr. Durbin, Illinois Democrat, said to reporters in Illinois.
“I am stunned that this is their defense,” he added.
Republican Sens. Tom Cotton of Arkansas and David Perdue of Georgia issued a joint statement Friday saying they did “not recall” the president using the term “s—hole” to describe places like Haiti and African nations. Mr. Perdue said on Sunday that he did not use that word, while Mr. Cotton said he was sitting too far away and didn’t hear the word.
The issue comes after a closed-door meeting with Mr. Trump and a bipartisan group of lawmakers.
The Trump administration did not explicitly deny the language, but new reports on Sunday said the word was “s—house” rather than “s—hole.”
“If they are trying to rescue the White House by this distinction between ’hole’ and ’house,’ that is a thin reed to try and create a rescue operation,” Mr. Durbin said.
• Sally Persons can be reached at spersons@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.