lives are complicated when people like him stop masking up. it's the trauma the asian-americans are coping with and the ongoing attacks and fears of more attacks they face daily. a house judiciary committee heard about lawmakers about the climate of hatred they are experiencing. the committee heard from chip roy, the ranking republican who used part of his time to fondly recall the good ole' days when lynchings in texas were a-okay. >> there's old sayings in texas about, you know, find all the rope in texas and get a tall oak tree. we take justice very seriously and we ought to do that, round up the bad guys. >> so, to a community living in fear of random acts of violence during a hearing to address that violence in discrimination, congressman roy there seems to have praised the idea of mobs of people lynching other people from trees. just as americans of asian descent are being slandered with false loyalty to another country, congressman roy decided now is the time to stoke that fire as well. >> the chinese communist party, whatever phrasing we want to use, and some people are saying we think those guys are the bad guys, for whatever reason. and let me just say clearly i do. i think that what they're doing, targeting our country, and i think that what they are doing to undermine our national security and what they're doing to steal our intellectual property and build up their military and rattle throughout the pacific, i think it's patently evil and deserving of condemnation. >> now, the congressman isn't wrong in believing the chinese government does some pretty terrible things. it certainly does. what he fails to acknowledge or even seems to care about is that americans -- americans -- are being targeted for being of chinese descent or people believing they are chinese descent because some violent person thinks they are. congressman roy had fognothing offer them. he barely acknowledged them before veering off into what aboutism. >> the victims of race-based voi lens and their families deserve justice. the tragedy we just saw occur in atlanta georgia. i would also suggest that the victims of cartels moving illegal aliens deserve justice. the american citizens in south texas are getting decimated by what's happening at the southern border deserve justices. businesses closed and burned last summer deserve justice. >> to one of the asian-american colleagues, what he said was like saying who cares. >> we cannot turn a blind eye to people living in fear. i want to go back to something that mr. roy said earlier. your president and your party and your colleagues can talk about issues with any other country that you want, but you don't have to do it by putting a bulls eye on the back of asian-americans across this country on our grandparents, on our kids. this hearing was to address the hurt and pain of our community, to find solutions. and we will not let you take our voice away from us. >> putting a bulls eye on the community's back, as the congresswoman puts it, happened to loyal japanese americans during the second world war, k catholic americans in the 20th century, and it's happening to asian-americans after the pandemic. listen to john cornyn being asked about it one full year ago today. >> does that seem like the best thing right now to call it? >> that's where it came from. >> is it helpful? it alienates people. it sends the tone that there is a group of people to blame. >> i think china is to blame because the culture where people eat bats and snakes and dogs and things like that -- >> in the year since those remarks, the organization stopped aapi hate has recorded nearly 3,800 acts of hate against asian-americans and pacific islanders. arrests on attacks on two elderly victims just the latest in a wave of violence, the rhetoric from the former president and others associates covid with one particular racial group is indeed associated with an uptick in asian bias. ask a supporter of the former president and here's what you get. >> do you regret using terms like china coronavirus? >> i don't know. does cnn regret that? does the democratic committee that started out regret that? i would like to see why the shooter did what he did. the virus came from china. the knowledge we had at that time was exactly that. i don't think people should go after any asian in any shape or form, and i condemn every action to that. >> by the way, as for the congressman's allegations about cnn, we stopped using terminology very early on. we explained in language like this in march of last year. after consulting with medical experts and receiving guidance, cnn has determined the name is inaccurate and considered stigmatizing. we stopped a year ago. congressman mccarthy, he didn't. he doubled down. the former president went further hammering the phrase and calling it kung-flu over and over again to cheers and laughter from large crowds. but as much as the congressman would like to make it, this isn't a gotcha game over words. it's an example of times words matter. victims know this. the only ones who don't know this are the one who is are clinging to them. congresswoman strickland, appreciate you joining us. a number of asian-americans testified today in front of the house judiciary committee on this uptick in violence. have you noticed a change in behavior or attitudes since the pandemic began? >> oh, definitely. we know that hate crimes against asian-americans have increased about 150% in most cities. and you know, i have friends who tell me story of standing in line at the grocery store and having people say, you know, you're responsible for this. i have friends who work in health care and they've told me stories of patients not wanting them to touch them because they're afraid to get covid. so, as i said on the house floor yesterday, anderson, words matter, leadership matters, and we have to stop using this rhetoric that tragically i believe ended in death in atlanta. >> the fact that your house colleague, congressman roy, thought today was a good day to bring up lynching in terms that seemed kind of glowing about days when mobs would lynch people in the state of texas from trees, it was bizarre, if not wildly offensive. i mean, famously 17 chinese men and boys were lynched by an angry mob in this country. is there any reason to believe that chip roy understands or is really concerned about the fear that many in the asian-american community are feeling right now? he seemed to want to talk about a lot of other groups. >> i think with someone like chip roy, i think he probably knows better, but he likes to use language that's inflammatory and dramatic. and here we are in the news talking about him. if he chooses to be ignorant, that's his thing. but what we need to do is speak out against that ignorance and hate. >> law enforcement has not ruled out calling the shooting a hate crime. do you see it as a hate crime? >> i do see it as a hate crime and there are many elements into this. this was eight people were murdered. this was a result of gun violence. but i also believe it was an issue around racism and bigotry. and these were women who worked in a spa, and the shooter went there looking for them. and so we can talk about economic anxiety. we can talk about sexual addiction. but i want to make sure that people understand that when women are murdered, when women of color are urd manied, there is often a nexus between racism and misogyny and we cannot ignore that. >> when you read these stories, watch elderly asian-americans being pushed to the ground completely randomly by people just passing by, families in restaurants being harassed, spit on on the street. i spoke with jeremy lynn last night. he talked about how important it is for asian-americans to stand up and speak bt eight. he does feel there's this change particularly in the younger generation in this country and the willingness to -- and the sense of urgency about speaking out. is it enough to speak out? are you afraid that these attacks against asian-americans are just going to continue to rise? >> so, with any type of attacks on any group or any hate crimes, we need people to be punished and held accountable. i think that's what has to change. and you're right. when jeremy lynne talked about the fact that people have maybe historically remained quiet about it, that has to change. i believe for some people there's a narrative that if you're asian-american and something happens to you that you're just going to be quiet and go away. and things have changed. we saw protests happening around the country yesterday. we're talking about alliship between african-americans, latino-americans and people who want to join with us. so, this is just another example of the tragic history of racism that this country has. and it started with slavery. we know it included the expulsion of chinese-americans, the intouentournament of japane. people are exhausted. people want folks to be held accountable and we need allies who are going to speak out with us. >> were you surprised when you heard the -- i don't know if you saw the press conference. you may have read about the remarks made by the representative of sheriff's office in gwinnett county where the shooter was apprehended and where the first shooting took place, essentially said the shooter was having a bad day, was at the end of his rope. does -- that kind of language -- if the shooter was not a -- i mean -- i'm wondering how you interpreted those statements. >> it's absurd someone would even make that remark. do you know who had a bad day, anderson? the eight people who were murdered. do you know who had a bad day? the family members and loved ones who had to get a call from an official to say their loved one died. >> it was cherokee county. i think i misspoke. i appreciate your time. thank you very much. >> thanks for having me. the atlanta investigation, the question of hate crime charges and more about the sheriff spokesman who, by the way, is no longer a spokesman on the case. we'll tell you why. plus a clash over mask wearing. one senator versus the facts. >> here we go again with the theater. let's get down to the facts. let me just state for the record that masks are not theater. masks are protective. dicines. and improved quality of life. ask your doctor about salonpas. it's good medicine. priceline works with top hotels, to save you up to 60%. these are all great. and when you get a big deal... you feel like a big deal. ♪ priceline. every trip is a big deal. the world around you may seem like an immovable, implacable place. it is not. it can be bright. quiet. and safe. it's a change that will be felt from this street. to this street. to no street. and everywhere in between. all it takes is the slightest push in just the right place and that will be the tipping point that changes everything. ♪ ♪ wealth is your first big investment. and worth is a partner toing poin help share the load.hing. wealth is saving a little extra. worth is knowing it's never too late to start - or too early. ♪ ♪ wealth helps you retire. worth is knowing why. ♪ ♪ principal. for all it's worth. the epson ecotank. no more buying cartridges. look at all this ink it comes with. big ink tanks. lots of ink. no more cartridges. incredible amount of ink. the epson ecotank. just fill and chill. ♪ ♪ ♪like an echo in the forest♪ [singing in korean] ♪another day will return♪ [singing in korean] ♪like nothing ever happened♪ ♪ ♪ wab net member of the former administration is weighing in tonight on the atlanta shootings. elaine chao telling cnn, quote, the critical work to combat the haunting rise of hatred against the aapi community must intensify with the immediacy this latest tragedy commands. as for her husband, mitch mcconnell, he avoided multiple questions today about whether the former president's rhetoric has led to anti-asian american virus. >> that's the big question, were these victims targeted because they are asian, because of the way they look. and atlanta police held a news conference a couple hours ago. they're looking at everything, not ruling anything out. they also updated us with information about the suspect, he frequented these two spas here in atlanta. he purchased the hand gun he used in these shootings on the day of the shootings. but again, atlanta police stressing that it's just too early to say whether or not these shootings were racially motivated. take a listen. >> as a result of that, though, we still have an investigation that is still ongoing. our investigation is separate from the cherokee county's investigation. our investigation is slightly different. we had four asian females that were killed, and so we are looking at everything to make sure that we discover and determine what the motive of our homicides were. so, again, it's just very important just to let you know that we are not done. >> now, anderson, atlanta mayor keisha lance bottoms believes race did play a role in these attacks. she says you just can't ignore that six out of the eight victims are asian women. and she also raised a good point, you know, mentioning the suspect's claims that this was not not racially motivated. he told police that was due to a sexual addiction, making him lash out at these spas. and mayor bat toms said you can't take at face value the comments of a confessed murderer. anderson. >> if part of what he has allegedly told police was he was trying to eliminate sexual temptation, the idea he equates sexual temptation with presumably asian spas, that, itself, seems based on race, which seems to counteract what the police have been saying about race had nothing to do with this. when will the alleged shooter appear in court? is it clear what the expected charges will be? >> so, he is charged with eight counts of murder in both fulton county and cherokee county. we don't know, anderson, when his next court appearance will be. he was scheduled for his first court appearance today, but that for some reason was cancelled on request of his attorney. so, he waived his right for a first appearance, anderson. >> i appreciate the reporting. we're going to hear more from mayor bottoms shortly. more on the fallout over the sheriff spokesman and what he said on camera. we're now learning what he posted online as well. natasha chen has that. >> reporter: the cherokee county, georgia, sheriff's office says captain jay baker is no longer the spokesperson on the case of a killing spree at three spas resulting in eight deaths. baker has come under fire for this social media post he allegedly shared last april showing custom graphic t-shirts reading covid-19 imported virus from china. the post read, love my shirt, get yours while they last. the account has been deleted. baker invited controversy in an answer to a reporter's question about whether the suspect understood the gravity of his actions. >> they got that impression that yes, he understood the gravity of it and he was pretty much fed up, at the end of his rope and yesterday was a really bad day for him and this is what he did. >> if someone's having a bad day, you don't go around shooting people. >> mar i can't harris and her mother-in-law are muslim americans who live near the shooting. they said had the suspect looked more like them, the actions would not be chocked up to a bad day. >> terrorist, someone goes out and kills someone, it's terrorism. if a black guy does something, they're going to shoot him. >> i have a kid who is growing up in the society of child of color. how am i supposed to explain this to him? >> the cherokee county sheriff issued a statement regretting any heartache. part of the statement reads in as much as his statements were construed as inappropriate they were not intended to disrespect any victims, the gravity of the tragedy or express empathy or sympathy for the suspect. this woman says removing baker as a spokesperson on this particular case is not enough. she says law enforcement agencies should go further and offer better training to their officers. >> if you had more sensitivity training or if you were more in tune with your community, you would know that the words that you chose to use at the time, like he said, an event that he's not used to in his 28 years serving, he would know not to use his flippant language. >> natasha chen joins us. in addition to this, the cherokee county attended a vigil at one of the shooting locations tonight whacht did he say? >> sheriff reynolds said. so same things he said in the written statement. he also said that there wasn't any amino acid dish nal information at this time to suggest racial motivation. however, he said he wanted to let the asian-american community know that they're in his thoughts and prayers and that he was very shaken by this crime, anderson. >> thanks very much. reaction from atlanta's mayor, keisha lance bottoms. we spoke just before air time. >> mayor bottom, i want to talk to you about how people in atlanta are doing in a moment. first i want to hear your reaction to the sheriff's department captain in cherokee county. for him to say the alleged shooter had a bad day struck a lot of people as something he likely wouldn't have said for somebody else. and this revelation that the captain had previously posted a racist anti-asian covid-19 image online. >> yeah, that's very disappointing. i can tell you, anderson, in all honesty, standing there yesterday and having the benefit of getting a briefing before we walked in, i thought that he was relaying what the shooter shared with him. i obviously didn't have the information regarding the post he put on facebook. that obviously is inexcusable. i'll leave it to him to explain what that's all about, but we were focused on the eight people who were killed on yesterday. and that's been hanging very heavily over our entire city. and the unfortunate part is there's now an added layer to this. and it just really speaks to where we are as a country. there's so much that we have to learn about each other and our sensitivities to one another. and what we're seeing playing out with asian-americans across this country is hateful. it's not who we are as americans or who we should be as americans. so, i would like for us to focus on the healing that needs to happen in this country especially as it relates to black and brown communities across america. >> do you feel that you know what the motive of the shooter was because obviously police have said what they said. it has upset some people who -- but i'm wondering what your perspective is. >> well, it looked like a hate crime to me. this was targeted at asian spas. six of the women who were killed were asian. it's difficult to see it as anything other than that. what we know about the definition of a hate crime is it can also be based on someone targeting women. so, there are many areas of hate that are covered within the definition of a hate crime, so i think any way that you look at it, it is a hate crime. it should be treated as such, and hate people were murdered. i know he's already been charged with that. but i do think it's appropriate that the prosecutors look at the most stringent and stiffest -- most stiff laws that can be applied to this. and i think it's difficult to see it as anything other than a hate crime. >> do you know at this point what those laws -- what laws might apply. when you say the stiffest, do you have a sense of where that might go? >> well, obviously there's an opportunity for federal investigators and prosecutors to engage. we know that we are looking at two different investigations in our state. there's one in cherokee county. the deputy that you mentioned is a cherokee county deputy. then there's the one that happened in atlanta in fulton county. but regardless of what the state charges are, there's still an opportunity for federal hate crime charges to be br