Democratic Rep. Hank Johnson accuses Republicans of wanting to “return to slavery.”

Democratic Rep. Hank Johnson on Wednesday slammed Republicans for wanting slavery to continue, arguing that more immigrants are needed in the US to keep Americans from starving.

Johnson denied the accusation during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on a bill aimed at making assaulting a police officer a deportable crime, in what he called an attempt by Republicans to “demonize immigrants.”

“The people we encounter are the ones who help put food on our table — we can’t eat without them,” Johnson argued. “If they were all turned away and this law passed that makes it easier to get to people who are already here legally and there were no immigration, then we wouldn’t have food on our plates.”

“We wouldn’t have anyone to take care of the building, the construction of our houses. We wouldn’t have anyone to clean up the hospitals, you know, honest work earning an honest day’s wages,” added the Georgia Democrat.

Johnson said Republicans “like to see immigrants queuing at the border because they know it’s a stream of workers willing to be exploited with cheap, if any, compensation.” .”

“I mean, if you could go back to slavery, you would gladly do that,” Johnson told his fellow Republicans. “But if you could pay people a dollar an hour, you’d settle for that. This is the race to the bottom that we have with immigrants queuing at the border trying to get in and go to work.”

Johnson’s stunning remark was met with outrage from conservatives.

Thomas Jipping, Legal Fellow at the Heritage Foundation, said in a tweet that Johnson “should be reprimanded”.

“It’s not only factually wrong, it’s stupid to compare slavery to working for a wage and it’s just flagrantly offensive,” Jipping wrote.

Radio host Pamela Furr from Tennessee called the remark“the dumbest statement I’ve ever heard.”

Syndicated talk show host Joe Pagliarulo written down“The fact that GA continues to vote this guy is a comment on how disconnected voters there need to be,” and he accused Johnson of “lying because Rs want slavery.” HIS party was the slaveholders.”

Johnson has a long history of outlandish insinuations and bizarre remarks as a congressman.

In January, Johnson floated a conspiracy theory that sensitive papers found at Biden’s Delaware home and an office he used at a Washington, DC think tank may have been “planted”.

“Alleged secret documents allegedly owned by Joseph Biden have surfaced…I am suspicious of the timing,” Johnson told Fox News.

“I’m also aware of the fact that things can be planted on people and places, and things can be planted…Things can be planted in places and then conveniently discovered,” Johnson continued, hinting at the possibility of an unprecedented slump in space House of the President.

Johnson also once feared that Guam might sink if too many people were allowed to inhabit the island.

During a 2010 session of the House Armed Services Committee, Johnson questioned now-retired Admiral Robert Willard, commander of the US Pacific Fleet, about the impact of US troops on Guam.

“I’m afraid the whole island will become so overpopulated that it’ll tip over and capsize,” a solemn Johnson asked the commander, who assured the congressman that it wasn’t a cause for concern.