Was it 'banana republic' or Banana Republic? Hines' comments draw international attention

The Republican nominee for North Carolina’s 13th Congressional district gained international attention this week after seemingly confusing a political term with a popular clothing chain. His campaign spokesman says it was a joke, not a gaffe.

The comment was part of a conversation that’s becoming fodder for Bo Hines’s opponent, Democrat Wiley Nickel, in what’s expected to be one of the country’s most competitive congressional races. Political scientists say it’s a textbook example of why more candidates are avoiding unscripted situations.

In an appearance Friday on the John Fredricks show, a conservative online talk show, GOP political newcomer Bo Hines was discussing the FBI’s recent search of former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence. Fredricks asked whether Hines would support defunding the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service if elected.

“We have to,” answered Hines, who is endorsed by Trump. “I mean, we're at a point in our country now, we have an unregulated fourth branch of government that's targeting middle-class Americans on a daily basis. I mean, it's unbelievable.”

“You know, a lot of people have likened this situation going on right now—they say we're in a banana republic,” Hines continued. “I think that's an insult to Banana Republics across the country. I mean, at least the manager at Banana Republic, unlike our president, knows where he is and why he's there and what he's doing.”

The term “banana republic” is typically used in political science to refer to developing countries with unstable governments, often with few civil rights. They are often run by dictators friendly to businesses. Banana Republic, by comparison, is a national clothing retailer owned by Gap Inc., whose stores are run by managers.

In a video of the conversation, Hines, a 26-year-old Yale University graduate who has never before run for state or federal elected office, wasn’t laughing or smiling as he made the comment. The host initially smiled, but he stopped as Hines continued his explanation.

Nonetheless, Hines’ campaign spokesman, Rob Burgess, said it was “clearly a joke.”

Nickel, a state senator, pounced on Hines’ response to Fredericks’ question about the IRS and FBI, calling his apparent acquiescence to the notion of defunding the agencies extreme, outrageous and “disqualifying,” due to the fact the comments come at a time when FBI agents are facing more threats. “It's a slap in the face to all the hard working members of law enforcement,” Nickel told WRAL News.

When asked to clarify his response to the FBI question, Hines walked back his support for defunding the agency, but said he believes Congress should investigate what he described as the “political weaponization” of the FBI and IRS by the Biden administration.

“I fully support the men and women within these agencies that work tirelessly in good faith to keep our communities safe, but I do not support the political hacks that use these agencies as a vessel to go after the American People,” Hines said in a statement. “Those individuals acting in bad faith should be investigated and promptly removed from their positions.”

Burgess said it was “a stretch” for Nickel to make an issue out of the comment. “Wiley Nickel hasn’t been able to prove himself a relevant candidate, so now his last resort is to grasp at straws,” Burgess said in a statement.

As for those who criticized Hines’ Banana Republic comments, Burgess said: “It’s clear now that the American people can add ‘understand a joke’ to the ever-growing list of things Democrats simply can’t comprehend; alongside the economy, public safety, education, and foreign policy … to name just a few,” Burgess said in a statement.

Political scientists say the incident shows why more campaign consultants are keeping candidates out of situations like the one Hines found himself in — open-ended discussions that could go awry if the candidate doesn’t stick the landing on a response.

David McLennan, a Meredith College political science professor, says that’s partly why several high-profile candidates have sought to avoid debates this election cycle—a strategy that analysts say protects them from being outmatched by an underdog or from unforced errors that might end up in attack ads.

The Banana Republic comment, McLennan says, underscores Hines’ inexperience. That could be a difference-maker to some swing voters in a tight race for the district, which includes southern Wake County, all of Johnston County and portions of Wayne and Harnett counties.

“That's where I think his opponent will probably use Hines’s inexperience against him during the campaign,” McLennan said. “This may end up in a campaign ad.”

But McLennan doesn’t think it’s likely to sway the outcome of the race.

“We're so used to these kinds of misstatements and gaffes that it sort of rolls off voters' backs, unless it's a sort of recurring pattern,” he said.

Longtime GOP political consultant Carter Wrenn agreed, calling it “much ado about nothing.”

“It didn’t strike me as an issue that would matter to voters,” he told WRAL News.

For now, though, Hines is at the mercy of media outlets that picked apart his comments, publications such as The Hill in Washington, D.C., The Daily Mail in the U.K. and others, including at least one that worried about the ramifications for other Gap brands if Hines is elected.

“Hopefully he doesn’t send Old Navy to war,” quipped the New York Daily News.