Rep. Charles Rangel (D., N.Y.) believes Vice President Joe Biden was talking about slavery when he told supporters at a Virginia campaign event Republicans are "going to put y’all back in chains," in an interview with the Perez Notes.
Rangel also says the controversial Priorities USA ad that suggested Mitt Romney was responsible for a woman’s death from cancer was "a stretch." The remarks begin at the 2:55 mark:
The Vice President said he’s going to put "y’all in chains." Was he talking about slavery? You bet your ass he was. Was he using the vernacular? Yes, he was. Did he think it was cute? Yes, he did. Was it something stupid to say? You bet your life it was stupid.
It was something if a black had said it, we would have been laughing, because we would know deep down they may be beating the hell out of us, but they ain’t thinking about putting us into any chains.
By the same token, I listened over and over how this poor man lost his wife because Romney didn’t provide health insurance for her. And I think that’s a stretch, in doing it. But now the ads have no credibility—no one really listens to the words. It’s like trashing.