Texas state Rep. Gene Wu is facing intense criticism after a resurfaced podcast clip showed him urging minority communities to unite against what he described as a shared “oppressor.”

The clip, originally recorded during a Dec. 31, 2024 episode of the podcast “Define American,” recently spread across social media and quickly ignited a wave of political backlash.

Wu, who leads Democrats in the Texas House of Representatives, made the remarks during a conversation about immigration, demographic change and political power in the United States.

Podcast Discussion Sparks Renewed Scrutiny

The viral clip came from a podcast episode hosted by Antonio Vargas titled “In this Texas District, 1/3 of Residents are Undocumented.”

During the discussion, Vargas asked Wu to reflect on the broader political forces shaping immigration debates and demographic shifts in the United States.

Wu argued that anxiety about demographic changes has played a major role in shaping anti-immigration rhetoric.

“The scary thing for me is that what is driving this newest round of anti-immigrant sentiment is purely a sense of White nationalism,” Wu said.

“That there is a sense of, ‘America really just belongs to White people,’ that this was that a lot of people believe that God gave America to White people to rule, and that any time that immigrants, minorities make progress in this country, that that is seen as a slight against them,” he continued.

The comments came as Wu and Vargas discussed population shifts in Texas and the growing diversity of the state’s electorate.

Comments About Minority Unity Draw Criticism

Later in the interview, the discussion turned to relationships between different minority communities, particularly Latino and Asian immigrant groups in Wu’s district.

Wu suggested that political power could change if different communities recognized what he described as shared political obstacles.

“I think you’ve hit exactly the right point,” Wu said. “It’s not just Latinos. It’s not just Asians. It’s not just African Americans. It’s everybody. Right? We, our country and the forces that be, the powers that be, have spent tremendous time, effort and money to make sure that those groups are never united, that they always see each other as enemies, as competitors, without ever realizing that they share one thing in common, that their oppressors all are the same. The oppression comes from one place.

“I always tell people the day the Latino, African-American, Asian and other communities realize that they are — that they share the same oppressor is the day we start winning, because we are the majority in this country now,” he continued. “We have the ability to take over this country and to do what is needed for everyone and to make things fair.”

After the clip resurfaced online, critics quickly accused Wu of promoting divisive rhetoric.

Texas Republicans Respond With Strong Condemnation

Several prominent Texas Republicans publicly criticized Wu’s remarks after the video circulated on social media.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton posted a sharp response.

“Gene Wu is a radical racist who hates millions of Texans just because they’re [W]hite. This is who the modern Democrat Party is,” Texas Attorney General and Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton wrote.

Former Texas GOP Chairman Matt Rinaldi also weighed in.

“This clip is being widely circulated for its advocacy for [W]hite genocide. People need to realize that this isn’t some random Democrat backbencher. This is the Texas House Democrat caucus LEADER.”

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz joined the criticism as well.

“The Democrat party is built on bigotry,” Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, replied.

Rep. Chip Roy called for Wu to step down from leadership.

“Unlike many Democrats, he admits his racism against [W]hite people and call to ‘take over this country.’ He should resign or the TX House should strip him of any power,” he wrote. “Another reason to pass my PAUSE Act. Stop importing people who hate you.”

Wu Clarifies Meaning Of “Oppressor” Comment

Following the backlash, Wu appeared to clarify what he meant by his remarks.

Reporting on the controversy, Houston Chronicle columnist Evan Mintz said he contacted Wu to ask what he meant by referring to a “shared oppressor.”

“nowhere in the clip does Wu talk about [W]hite people.”

Mintz wrote that Wu clarified his comments were aimed at Republicans rather than white Americans broadly.

“Just to clarify, I even called up Wu to ask who, exactly, he meant by ‘shared oppressor,'” Mintz wrote. “His answer: Republicans.”

Wu expanded on that explanation in his comments to the writer.

“It is undeniable that Republicans have spent the past 50 years beating down communities,” Wu told the writer.

Mintz noted that even some critics focused less on the racial aspect and more on the broader argument.

“To their credit, some Republicans engaged with what Wu actually said, swiping at him for dividing the American people into subgroups in the first place — which, yes, he did do,” Mintz reported.

Wu’s office did not immediately respond to requests for additional comment.