TEXAS — Appearing on Fox News’ “The Ingraham Angle” on Thursday, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick addressed the spread of COVID-19 in the state and elsewhere and placed the blame for the uptick in cases on Democrats and the Black community.

"Most of the numbers are with the unvaccinated and the Democrats like to blame Republicans on that. Well, the biggest group in most states are African Americans who have not been vaccinated,” Patrick said. “The last time I checked over 90 percent of them vote for Democrats in their major cities and major counties."

Patrick’s comments come as Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is battling it out in the courts with cities, counties and school districts that have flouted his executive orders banning mask mandates.

Texas more than once this week has reported in excess of 20,000 new cases of COVID-19 in a single day. More than 12,700 Texans are currently hospitalized with the disease.

As of the 2020 census, Black Texans comprise 11.82% of the state’s population.

Texas Democrats were quick to criticize Patrick’s comments. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner tweeted, “The Lt. Governor’s statements are offensive and should not be ignored.”

Former Obama housing chief Julian Castro simply wrote “reprehensible.” 

Later, Texas gubernatorial candidate and former Texas GOP Chairman Allen West criticized Patrick for his comments, tweeting, "I find the comments of Lt. Gov. @DanPatrick blaming unvaccinated Black people for COVID spread in Texas disgusting, unconscionable, utterly disturbing, and highly insulting. I am an unvaccinated Black man in Texas."

West went on to call on Patrick and Abbott to prohibit unvaccinated and untested migrants from crossing the border into Texas.