- [Narrator] That's Cindy Hyde-Smith
saying she'd be in the front row of a public hanging
in a state where 600 Black people were killed in lynchings.
She's the Trump endorsed Mississippi Senator
who likes to dress up as a Confederate soldier.
- I'm here to ask the people of Mississippi
to send Cindy Hyde-Smith back to the United States Senate.
- [Narrator] Cindy Hyde-Smith was born in 1959
and grew up in the southern town of Brookhaven, Mississippi.
According to the Jackson Free Press
she attended Lawrence County Academy,
an all-White segregation academy
setup by the White parents of something called
the Citizens' Council, in an effort
to bypass integration laws.
Hyde-Smith's school mascot appears to have been
a Confederate general waiving a Confederate flag.
The academy lasted through the end of 80s
before finally shuttering it's doors
because of low attendance rates.
One of the segregation academies that survived
was Brookhaven Academy where Cindy,
of course, enrolled her daughter.
The school has since rebranded itself
as a Christian academy and has admitted
one whole Black student in a city that is 55% Black.
- We all want good educations for our children.
- [Narrator] Not long after getting elected
to the Mississippi Senate in 1999,
Hyde-Smith introduced a bill to rename a stretch of highway
after Confederate President Jefferson Davis,
but the bill didn't pass and Hyde-Smith
left the Democratic party because,
according to the former Mississippi Democratic Party
chairman, the party had become
too closely identified with Black people.
He also said she was scared to death of race
because she was a Democrat in a district where
she depended on Black votes and she knew
that she had to at least give the appearance
of being friendly to African American constituents.
But, she was mortally terrified
of being overly identified with Black constituents.
- I'm the candidate that Donald J. Trump has said--
- [Woman] I am so sorry-- - Cindy, we need you back.
- [Narrator] In 2010, Hyde-Smith became a Republican
and was elected State Agriculture Commissioner
in 2011 and a second term in 2015.
In March of 2018, Governor Phil Bryant
appointed Hyde-Smith to the United States Senate.
Thad Cochran, the prior senator,
announced he would resign due to declining health.
The Jackson Free Press notes that Phil Bryant,
the guy that appointed her, is a member
of The Sons of Confederate Veterans.
It's a group that advocates to conserve
Confederate monuments as well as preserving,
according to it's website, the history and legacy
of these heroes so that future generations
can understand the motives that animated the southern cause.
Bryant, who deemed Hyde-Smith the perfect person
for the role, has designated April
as Confederate Heritage Month.
- I'm honored to have Governor Phil Bryant's endorsement.
- [Narrator] While getting the endorsement,
of an aspiring Confederate general, was great,
what Hyde-Smith really thought would put her over the top
was making it more difficult for liberal folks to vote.
Literally admitting that voter suppression is a great idea.
- [Narrator] When mid-terms came on November sixth
Mississippi was in an interesting situation,
because Thad Cochran, the senator
who left his seat for health reasons,
walked away, a new candidate would have to receive
50% of the vote in order to take his seat.
Otherwise, a runoff would ensue
and that's exactly what happened.
Because no one received 50%.
Hyde-Smith got 42% and her
Democratic opponent Mike Espy got 40%.
A special election was called.
There was one lone debate where,
according to the Jackson Free Press,
Hyde-Smith demanded no audience and no press be present.
The debate was organized by the Mississippi Farm Bureau
who's top board members all donated to her campaign.
She also demanded to see the notepads
the candidates were supposed to use
to take notes on during the debate an hour ahead of time.
Her team seemingly used that hour
to fill-up the notepad with talking points.
But even with her notes she stumbled.
- Tonight you have heard two clearly different,
opposite, differences between me and my opponent.
- [Narrator] Hyde-Smith also had to use her notepad
in order to form an apology about her desire
to sit in the front row of a public hanging.
- You know, for anyone that was offended
by my comments, I certainly apologize.
- [Narrator] After voting in line with Trump,
100% of the time, Hyde-Smith received his endorsement
where he explained that if she were to lose
we would return to the failures of the past.
- Your vote on Tuesday will decide
whether we build on our extraordinary achievements
or whether we empower the radical Democrats
to obstruct our progress, reverse our gains
and return to the failures of the past.
- [Narrator] It's unclear if public hangings
and donning Confederate outfits are failures of the past.
But regardless, on November 27, 2018, Trump had his victory.
Hyde-Smith won 53% of the vote
to remain a senator for Mississippi.
- This has been an unbelievable campaign
but you know, God above is the reason we're here
and I'm gonna give him glory every single day for it.