Alabama congressman says everyone 'has some type of racist in them' during debate: report

An Alabama congressman said everyone "has some type of racist in them" during a Wednesday night debate with his Republican opponent. 

Rep. Jerry Carl made the remarks during a GOP primary debate against fellow Rep. Barry Moore. Both lawmakers are vying to be the Republican nominee for a congressional seat in the state's March 5 primary after Alabama's congressional maps were redrawn. 

During the debate, the moderator asked both men if they agreed with GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley, who said the United States has "never been a racist country" during an interview earlier this month with Fox News host Brian Kilmeade.

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U.S. Rep. Jerry Carl of Alabama is running for a new seat after the state's congressional maps were redrawn.  (Reuters)

"I used to work a lot with ministers, and I had some very private conversations. Everyone has some type of racist in them," Carl said. "My mother, who [after] Pearl Harbor — she couldn’t stand the Japanese. She couldn’t stand them. And it used to just eat her from the inside out. So it’s there."

Carl's office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

"What I said is there’s been racism in America, and we need to do everything we can to eradicate it and stand united regardless of skin color," Carl said in a follow-up statement to The Hill. "The far left wants to divide us on race with ANTIFA and Black Lives Matter, and Barry Moore does it by voting to keep [critical race theory] in our military."

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"This district was drawn along racial lines, and I disagree with that because we need to look at people for who they are, regardless of their skin color. Barry Moore compared opposing races to ants who have been thrown together, but we need to stand united as Americans to do what’s best for our country, regardless of our race," Carl added.

When Moore answered the question, he suggested that the Black Lives Matter movement and far-left Antifa organizations were responsible for causing "division" in the country, The Hill reported. 

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"So I think as a nation, we obviously have some issues, but the Civil Rights Movement and what Martin Luther King brought in our nation, the way we healed through that process is quite remarkable. Matter of fact, I think we’ve gotten to a point almost in this country that we didn’t see racism. And then Black Lives Matter and Antifa begin to divide us," Moore said in his response.

"Race needs to be a thing of the past. Healing needs to be a thing of the future," he added.