After backlash, an Allentown GOP senator stands by the expletive he used to describe Philly
Democrats defended the city after Coleman made comments about Philadelphia and DA Larry Krasner to Fox News.
A Pennsylvania Republican state senator doubled down Thursday on remarks denigrating Philadelphia, despite backlash from prominent Philly Democrats.
“Philadelphia wouldn’t be such a shithole” if District Attorney Larry Krasner prosecuted more crimes, State Sen. Jarrett Coleman, a Republican from Allentown, told Fox News on Wednesday.
Asked to elaborate Thursday, Coleman cited Philadelphia’s crime rates, which are higher than the national average.
“My statement stands. The people of Philadelphia deserve better,” Coleman said in a written statement.
He was met with condemnation from Democrats who defended the city, which last year recorded its lowest number homicides in more than half a century.
“Now just imagine the outcry if I, a Democrat from an urban area, said exactly the same thing about a rural area?” U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle, a Philadelphia Democrat, posted to X Thursday morning. “But I wouldn’t because I believe all in our society are of equal worth and deserve our respect.”
Coleman’s comments came in a broader piece in which he threatened to use a Senate committee he chairs to push back against Krasner and Philadelphia Sheriff Rochelle Bilal if they interfered with President Donald Trump’s administration’s immigration enforcement.
Last week Krasner and Bilal promised to prosecute any U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents who committed crimes in the city. Bilal’s comments, made after an ICE agent fatally shot Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis, went viral and earned the ire of Trump-aligned social media accounts and public officials across the country.
Coleman criticized the Philadelphia officials Wednesday, narrowing in on Krasner, a progressive who has been a frequent target of Republican ire since he was first elected in 2017.
His comments were reminiscent of Trump’s notorious remarks in his first term when he was reported to have used the same term to describe some countries in Africa, the Caribbean, and Central America during a meeting. Trump confirmed his use of the term nearly eight years later during a recent visit to Pennsylvania, where he recounted it a cheering crowd in Mount Pocono.
State Sen. Tony Williams, a Democrat from Philadelphia, echoed Boyle’s criticism and demanded an apology from Coleman, arguing the senator’s comments had degraded not just Philly but the country.
“He should unfortunately be ashamed of the manner in which he described Philadelphia,” Williams said.
“I have that part in me as well, I just don’t think it’s productive in these times to add fuel to the fire of stupidity,” he added.
State Sen. Nikil Saval, a Philadelphia Democrat, said he would be happy to give Coleman a tour of Philly, which he described as “safe, connected, vibrant.”
“The biggest threat to the safety of Philadelphians is the chronic underfunding perpetuated by Pennsylvania Senate Republicans,” he said.