[ad_1]
Multimedia playback is not supported on your device
President of the United States, Donald Trump, denied being racist after speaking about a black Democratic congressman and the American city of Baltimore.
Trump attacked Elijah Cummings, calling his Baltimore-dominated black district of "disgusting mess, infested with rats and rodents".
Several influential Democrats, including Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, have criticized the president for his language.
Mr. Trump has diverted criticism by accusing Mr. Cummings of racism.
"There is nothing racist about stating clearly what most people already know, namely that Elijah Cummings did a terrible job for the inhabitants of his district," wrote the president in a statement. many tweets on Sunday.
"Dems always play the race card when they are unable to win with facts," he writes.
Mr Trump had earlier reprimanded accusations of racism on those who accused him, without proof. He gave no example of Mr. Cummings' racism.
Multimedia playback is not supported on your device
As chair of the House's oversight committee, Mr. Cummings initiated a series of investigations into the Trump administration, including the treatment of migrants in detention centers.
President Trump's remarks came just weeks after being criticized for another tweet in which he asked four congressional women democrats – all women of color – to "return" to "crime-infested" places.
The four women parliamentarians – Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib, Ayanna Pressley and Ilhan Omar – are American citizens. Three were born in the United States, while another, Ilhan Omar, came to the United States as a refugee child. A few days later, at a rally in North Carolina, some supporters of President Trump chanted "Send it back!", Referring to Ms. Omar.
Copyright of the image
Getty Images
Baltimore Inner Harbor District
The description by Mr. Baltimore's district president, Mr. Cummings, and his attacks on the four women parliamentarians echoed a language similar to the one he had used in the past to describe essentially black districts. and African countries, which he would have called "shitholes".
A week before taking office in January 2017, Mr. Trump is caught up in John Lewis, a congressman and hero of civil rights, who had refused to attend his inauguration, qualifying him for "infested crime".
What was the argument with Cummings?
A war of words broke out between the two men last week after Mr. Trump declared Mr. Cummings a "bully". He also targeted his predominantly Baltimore black district.
…. As was proved last week during a congressional tour, the border is clean, efficient and well managed, but very crowded. Cumming District is a disgusting mess, infested with rats and rodents. If he spent more time in Baltimore, maybe he could help clean up this very dangerous and dirty place
– Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 27, 2019
End of @realDonaldTrump's post
In response, several Democratic lawmakers – including Ms. Pelosi and President-elect Joe Biden – defended Mr. Cummings and accused the president of racism.
Mr. Cummings responded in the same way, tweeting: "It's a constitutional duty to oversee the executive branch, but it's a moral duty to defend the interests of my constituents."
How did Trump respond?
In a series of tweets, the president has doubled his attacks on Mr. Cummings and his fellow Democrats.
"There is nothing racist about stating clearly what most people already know, namely that Elijah Cummings did a terrible job for the people in her district," Trump said.
He also defended his economic record with the "great African-American people of our country".
…. at a glance, the facts speak louder than the words! The Democrats still play the race card, while they have done so little for the great African-American people of our country. Now, the lowest unemployment rate in US history is only improving. Elijah Cummings has failed badly!
– Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 28, 2019
End of Twitter post @realDonaldTrump
Mr Trump also addressed the Democratic presidential candidate, Bernie Sanders, who described Trump's latest remarks as "unsightly" in an interview with CNN.
The president pointed out that Sanders had compared western Baltimore to a "third world country" during a visit to the city in 2015.
"I suppose Bernie must now be labeled racist, as a Republican would do if he used that term and standard!" He continued.
In an unexpected turn, Mr. Trump launched an attack on civil rights defender Al Sharpton, who allegedly claimed "Hates Whites & Cops!"
I have known Al for 25 years. I went to fight with him and Don King, always of course. He "loved Trump!" He often asked me for favors. Al is a crook, a troublemaker, always looking for a score. I'm just doing his thing. Must have intimidated Comcast / NBC. Hate Whites and Cops! https://t.co/ZwPZa0FWfN
– Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 29, 2019
End of post Twitter 3 by @realDonaldTrump
Reverend Sharpton had previously criticized the president's comments about the breed, but did not comment on the last exchange with Mr. Cummings.
In response to the tirade, Reverend Sharpton published a photo of 2006, saying the president now had a "different melody".
What is the situation in Baltimore?
Copyright of the image
Getty Images
A man walks on a street in Baltimore near the place where a person was recently murdered
Baltimore continues to face a number of problems, ranging from gun violence to corruption.
In May, the city's mayor democrats resigned as a result of investigations into trade agreements that she has entered into with public entities related to the city – the second mayor to resign in the last ten years as a result of allegations of corruption.
Last year, eight police officers were convicted of stealing citizens and pay, as part of a corruption scandal within the Baltimore Police Department.
- When cops become thieves
- Can Baltimore stay 72 hours without murder?
And the city has one of the highest homicide rates in the United States. There were 55.8 murders per 100,000 population in 2017, up from 51.4 in 2016. The city of New York had 3.9 per 100,000 and the city of Chicago 28.07 per 100,000.
How did people react?
The response of Republican party representatives has been largely silenced.
In a statement, Maryland Republican Governor Larry Hogan said "more attacks between politicians will not get us anywhere."
The lieutenant governor of the state, Boyd Rutherford, also tweeted about the fact that he had "significant political differences" with Mr. Cummings, while hoping that the president's criticism "would not be directed against the many good people and workers who live in the district ".
The hashtags #WeAreBaltimore and #WhitePeopleAgainstRacism briefly evolved on Twitter, with thousands of social media users opposing Trump's comments.
Among them was David Simon, a reporter and writer for The Wire, a critically acclaimed US crime drama series set in Baltimore.
The Baltimore Sun newspaper also published a scathing editorial calling Mr. Trump "the most dishonest man ever to have occupied the Oval Office".
"It's better to have vermin in your neighborhood than to be one," he added.
[ad_2]
Source link
