Rep. Emanuel Cleaver said Wednesday it "was a mistake" for former Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear to deliver the Democratic response to President Trump's joint address to Congress.
In an interview with MSNBC, moderator Craig Melvin noted the response to the choice of Beshear, who focused his rebuttal on Obamacare successes in his state, was not enthusiastic.
He joked people seated behind Beshear "looked like they were in a hostage video."
Cleaver defended the substance of Beshear's remarks, saying he "did a fabulous job in terms of healthcare" successes in his state.
But he added he would have like to have seen a younger Democratic leader give the rebuttal, mentioning former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julian Castro.
"We're going to have a problem if we don't start presenting an image of the millennials and that there's a youth movement in the Democratic Party," he added. "I don't mind saying when we make mistakes, and that was a mistake."
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