Killer Mike defends ‘uterus’ comments

Rapper Killer Mike speaks during a rally for Bernie Sanders at Morehouse College in Atlanta on Tuesday. (Photo: Evan Vucci/AP)

Killer Mike ignited a firestorm of criticism during a rally for Bernie Sanders in Atlanta on Tuesday after he quoted a female activist who told him “a uterus doesn’t qualify you to be president.”

The remark came as the rapper, whose real name is Michael Render, was addressing Hillary Clinton’s approach to racial inequality while introducing the Vermont senator.

“When people tell us, ‘Hold on, wait awhile.’ And that’s what the other Democrat is telling you,” he told the crowd at Morehouse College, part of a tour of historically black colleges as the Sanders campaign looks to gather support from African-American voters. “‘Hold on, Black Lives Matter. Just wait awhile. Hold on, young people in this country. Just wait awhile.’”

Render continued: “And then, and then she — she get good, she have your own mama come to you. Your own mama say to you, ‘Well, you’re a woman.’ But I talked to [progressive activist] Jane Elliott a few weeks ago, and Jane said, ‘Michael, a uterus doesn’t qualify you to be president of the United States. You have to be — you have to have policy that’s reflective of social justice.’”

“Paying women a fair wage is social justice,” he added. “Ending a bulls*** drug war is social justice. Making sure our children can go to college is social justice.”

The comments came on the heels of a similar controversy surrounding former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright’s suggestion that there’s “a special place in hell for women” who don’t vote for Clinton.

Some Twitter users expressed outrage, accusing the rapper of being sexist.

He responded over a series of tweets:

Brian Fallon, Clinton’s press secretary, was asked to respond to the rapper’s comments early Wednesday.

“It’s disappointing,” Fallon said on CNN’s “New Day.” “Obviously if the suggestion there is that Hillary Clinton is asking anyone to vote for her based on her gender, that’s completely off base. This is just unfortunately the latest in a series of instances where some of Sen. Sanders’ top surrogates have made comments, to say the least, that are off script.”

Sanders sits with Killer Mike at the Busy Bee Cafe in Atlanta in November 2015. (Photo: David Goldman/AP)

Killer Mike has become one of Sanders’ most visible supporters since he met the Vermont senator in November — part of the campaign’s outreach to minority leaders.

The rapper spent five hours with Sanders in Atlanta, where the pair engaged in a wide-ranging discussion at Killer Mike’s barbershop followed by lunch at Busy Bee Cafe, a popular soul food restaurant.

Last month, he even represented Sanders in the spin room following a Democratic presidential debate in Charleston, S.C., where a reporter asked what drew him to the self-described Democratic socialist.

“Smoking a joint and reading his tweets,” the rapper responded.