McCarthy: Democrats 'trying to erase' the story of the U.S. and 'radically change the way we live'

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy slammed Democrats on Thursday for deciding to remove a statue of President Abraham Lincoln and a freed slave in Boston, arguing that Democratic Party leaders are “trying to erase” the story of the United States.

“There has been no other country like ours, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that we are all equal,” McCarthy said during a press conference. “So this fourth of July, every American should pause for a moment to thank God that they were born here, but also double the commitment, regardless of party, that you will bind yourself to pass that freedom and guarantee it to the next generation.”

The California Republican mentioned the portrait of Frederick Douglass, an African-American Republican, in his office.

“A man who was born into slavery, fought for his freedom to become an adviser to the very first Republican President Abraham Lincoln,” he said. “Frederick Douglass said this to describe America: 'Every man has his chance. If he cannot be president, he can at least be prosperous.’ In this respect, America is not only the exception to the general rule, but the social wonder of the world.”

McCarthy referred to the Emancipation Memorial of Lincoln and the freed slave that’s being removed in Boston.

Freed slaves paid for the original memorial in Washington, D.C. and Moses Kimball, a Republican politician who opposed slavery, funded the copy of the D.C. statue that stood in Boston since the 1870s until now. 

McCarthy also mentioned Mount Rushmore, which includes president Lincoln, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Theodore Roosevelt. 

The Democratic Party posted a tweet about President Trump's visit Friday to Mount Rushmore, saying it was "glorifying white supremacy." The tweet was removed.

"Unfortunately, though, some of the left, encouraged by the silence of Democratic leaders, including the speaker of this House [Nancy Pelosi], are trying to erase our story,” he said. “Whether it is a monument of Abraham Lincoln freeing a slave or four of our greatest presidents, Democrats no longer view the richness of our country's history worthy."

McCarthy also argued that Democrats are trying to “change” the way Americans live today.

“Not only do they want or erase our past, they want to radically change the way we live today. The mobs that Democrats encourage destroy property, they threaten and sometimes even attack innocent citizens,” he said. "I'll be introducing legislation to withhold funding from states and cities whose leaders fail to uphold the law.”

He also criticized House Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman Peter DeFazio for attempting to “pass an infrastructure bill that would allow China to control things as critical as our electrical grid.”

The $1.5 trillion 2,400-page bill passed in the House on Wednesday evening. It expected to die in the GOP-led Senate.

Before passage, 39 House Democrats voted with House Republicans to add a provision to the bill to prevent Chinese companies connected to the construction of “Uyghur concentration camps” from contributing to U.S. transportation construction projects.