Congressional Black Caucus invites Paul Ryan to discuss poverty

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The Congressional Black Caucus has reached out to Rep. Paul Ryan, following the Republican’s controversial remarks regarding unemployment in “inner cities.”

The former GOP nominee for vice president told conservative Bill Bennett on his radio show Morning In Ameirca, “We have got this tailspin of culture, in our inner cities in particular, of men not working and just generations of men not even thinking about working or learning the value and the culture of work, and so there is a real culture problem here that has to be dealt with.”

Ryan was widely criticized for what many perceived as racial undercurrents in his comments. The congressman later apologized.

“The broader point I was trying to make is that we cannot settle for this status quo and that government and families have to do more and rethink our approach to fighting poverty. I have witnessed amazing people fighting against great odds with impressive success in poor communities. We can learn so much from them, and that is where this conversation should begin,” said Ryan.

Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-OH) the current chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus and Rep. Gwen Moore (D-WI) wrote a letter to Ryan calling his initial remarks “highly offensive”  and in which they request his presence at the Black Caucus’ weekly meeting to discuss the topic of poverty.

“As members of the Congressional Black Caucus, we were deeply troubled by your recent remarks on Bill Bennett’s Morning in America show where you stated that there is a “tailspin of culture, in our inner cities in particular, of men not working and just generations of men not even thinking about working or learning the value and the culture of work,” the letter reads, “Your comments were highly offensive.”

Click here to read the full letter.