Diamond and Silk: Bernie Sanders Wants to Keep Black People ‘Enslaved to the Government’

Conservative duo Diamond and Silk (Lynnette Hardaway and Rochelle Richardson) revisited a right-wing talking point on Friday’s Fox & Friends by claiming Senator Bernie Sanders wants to keep African Americans ‘enslaved’ and in poverty.

“First of all, let’s just get this straight, Bernie is not advocating for black people. What he’s advocating for is to keep black people in poverty and keep them enslaved to the government,” Hardaway said.

“We talk about exploitation. Why is he trying to exploit black people with free stuff? Because free stuff is not freedom. It’s a way to be controlled by white old men like Bernie Sanders.”

“When I look at all of them up there on that stage, especially Bernie Sanders, I just shake my head,” Hardaway said.

“They don’t even realize that we have a president that have this economy booming, that cut regulations where people can thrive. If you want to be a business owner, you can. And that goes for black people, too.”

Hardaway and Richardson are not the first conservatives who have tried to associate social programs with slavery, nor are they the first commentators on Fox News to explicitly link the Democrats with slavery – earlier this week, an African American guest said the same thing.

Watch the video above, via Fox News.