Rep. Becca Balint, D-Vt., was blasted this week after video surfaced online of her using vulgar language to warn constituents about the existential consequences of restricting immigration into the United States.
“If we don’t have avenues for people to come here legally to work or to build a home here … we’re not going to have anybody around to wipe our a** because we don’t have enough people,” Balint said, according to video posted on X by the Vermont Daily Chronicle.
The progressive congresswoman made her remarks during a town hall event in Newport, Vermont, that reportedly took place on May 28.
In a statement obtained by the Chronicle, Vermont Republican Party Chairman Paul Dame said Balint should apologize for her “crude choice of words” as well as for the “disturbing sentiment” that the main reason for allowing foreign nationals into the U.S. is to “perform labor that she deems beneath the dignity of others.”
“At the heart of these remarks is an opinion so offensive and so profoundly out of touch that it reveals a fundamental lack of respect for those who come to this country — abiding by the rules — in pursuit of freedom, opportunity and a better life,” Dame said.
“The way Congresswoman Balint reduced Vermont’s hardworking legal immigrants to little more than ‘a** wipers’ is embarrassing,” he added. “She owes them — and all Vermonters — an apology for such a shameful characterization.”
In a Wednesday opinion piece for the Rutland Herald, Halifax, Vermont, resident Pam Baker demanded that Balint apologize for her “highly offensive remark.”
“This crude metaphor perpetuates a bigoted stereotype that immigrants are only valued for low-wage, undesirable jobs like personal care,” Baker wrote. “Such rhetoric is disturbing and dehumanizes immigrants, ignoring their vital contributions to Vermont’s economy in a wide range of important roles. It’s an egregious viewpoint that demands condemnation.”
“We must reject rhetoric that diminishes immigrants’ dignity and advocate for fair, efficient immigration policies that value their diverse contributions,” said Baker. “We demand Rep. Balint apologize for her heinous comment; for to give her a ‘pass’ would be even more egregious. We must demand Rep. Balint begin her designated job to represent all Vermonters, to improve the state’s financial and overall outlook. Or we will put someone in office who will have the state’s best interests at heart.”
Newsmax reached out to Balint’s office for comment but did not receive an immediate response.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.
