LINCOLN- A handful of state lawmakers criticized Sen. Mike Groene on Thursday for what they say was an offensive comment made by the senator. During debate, Sen. Groene called Sen. Mike Flood of Norfolk, owner of a broadcasting company, a 'media Mongol', instead of a 'media mogul'. Brought to his attention later, Groene said of Flood: “I think he’s got mixed heritage, so that qualifies him as a ... mongrel and he’s aggressive so that does qualify him sometimes as a Mongol.”

On Thursday, Sen. Matt Hansen said Groene should apologize on the floor for his deeply offensive and deeply impactful comments. Hansen said he was not criticizing slip of tongue, rather he wanted to clarify why using terms viewed as ableist or racist is wrong.

“I want the body to stand up and show a bit of backbone and say, hey, at a minimum, you shouldn’t be racist on the microphone,” Hansen said.

Groene defended his actions by saying his intent did not match up with what Hansen was saying. Further saying he admires Mongols because that means they are aggressive and 'conquered half the earth'.

This incident reminded some on the floor of last session when Sen. Ernie Chambers compared Sen. Julie Slama to Sally Hemings, a slave woman owned by Thomas Jefferson. His Republican colleagues then drew calls for Chambers' expulsion from the Legislature. Sen. Adam Morfeld said that with freedom of speech, individuals must accept they will be criticized for certain types of speech.

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