Former Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa., blasted CNN for giving in to cancel culture after the network fired him because of “insensitive” comments he made about Native Americans.
Santorum, who has been a conservative commentator on CNN for the past four years, was speaking to a conservative youth organization last month when he pointed out that Native Americans didn’t play a role in the founding of the U.S.
“We birthed a nation from nothing,” Santorum said during his speech.
“I mean, there was nothing here,” he continued, before clarifying: “I mean, yes, we have Native Americans. There isn’t much Native American culture in American culture.”
Santorum later said he wasn’t trying to be dismissive of Native-American culture because “they did have an impact, in fact, in this country.”
But it was too late, according to CNN insiders, who said management was not happy with his explanation.
“Leadership wasn’t particularly satisfied with that appearance,” a CNN executive said. “None of the anchors wanted to book him. So he was essentially benched anyway.”
CNN officially terminated its contract with Santorum last week.
Santorum said the “intolerance of the Left” continues to punish anyone who tries to speak honestly.
“One of the things I’m concerned about is that you get savaged by telling the truth—and I told the truth here,” Santorum told Fox News’s Sean Hannity after his termination was announced.
“What I said was not at all disparaging toward Native Americans,” Santorum continued. “What I was talking about is the founding of the United States of America. Native Americans did not have a role in the founding of our country.”
