Brian Schatz

Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) believes the vice president committed a severe “tactical error” in his response to misogynistic and racist comments made in a Young Republicans group chat.

“I think Trump is the only politician that can get away with this crazy s---,“ Schatz said Wednesday on ”Pod Save America."

A Politico investigation into thousands of leaked Telegram messages revealed members of the Young Republican National Federation joked about rape, slavery and gas chambers. That report, published Tuesday, resulted in bipartisan condemnation and calls for those involved to step down from their positions.

Amid the outcry, Vice President JD Vance said he refused to “join the pearl clutching”.

Vance on Tuesday posted a screenshot of leaked text messages from Jay Jones, a candidate for Virginia’s attorney general post, in which the Democratic politician suggested Virginia House Speaker Todd Gilbert (R) get “two bullets to the head.”

Vance continued to downplay the severity of the Young Republican chat leak Wednesday on “The Charlie Kirk Show“ podcast.

“I really don’t want to us to grow up in a country where a kid telling a stupid joke, telling a very offensive, stupid joke is cause to ruin their lives,” Vance said. The vice president added that “any person seriously wishing for political violence and political assassination is 1,000 times worse than what a bunch of young people, a bunch of kids say in a group chat, however offensive it might be.”

Tommy Vietor, cohost of “Pod Save America,” condemned Jones’ texts as “nuts,” saying there is “no place in America for political violence.” Schatz questioned why Vance did not also choose to rebuke the Young Republican members who called rape “epic,” praised Hitler and referred to Black people as monkeys.

“You know, why not both, right? Why not condemn political violence or violent talk on both sides,” Schatz said. “I do think JD, maybe he has no choice here, but he’s making a tactical error.”

Schatz contrasted Vance with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), a Trump ally who has on occasion broken with the administration.

“Ted understands that Trump is singular and can get away with uniquely unconstitutional things,” Schatz said. “But when it comes time to run in a primary, someone’s going to need to be able to say, ‘Look, I supported Trump all the way, but when he came after your First Amendment rights I was there to stand up.’

“I think JD has just decided, you know, no enemies to my right. Even if by your right it means actual, real neo-Nazis.”