‘THE WHAT?’

Francis Suarez Explains Himself After Embarrassing Interview Gaffe

Radio host Hugh Hewitt caught the GOP presidential hopeful unawares when he asked about China’s abuses of its Muslim minority group.

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez has blamed radio host Hugh Hewitt’s pronunciation for an awkward interview exchange on Tuesday in which Suarez appeared to have never heard of China’s persecuted Uyghurs. Asked by Hewitt if he would be “talking about the Uyghurs in your campaign,” Suarez replied “the what?” When Hewitt repeated the word, Suarez then asked, “What’s a Uyghur?” In a tweet posted after the interview, Suarez insisted he does, in fact, know who the Uyghurs are—he just didn't recognize Hewitt's pronunciation. “Of course, I am well aware of the suffering of the Uyghurs in China,” Suarez wrote. Still, it wasn't a great look for the Republican newcomer, given that China’s alleged mass imprisonment and torture of the Muslim minority group is a major point of tension in U.S. relations. The U.S. and several allies have leveled sanctions against Chinese leaders over the widely reported human rights abuses, and Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said the treatment amounts to genocide.