After President Trump spoke with reporters at Joint Base Andrews on Tuesday, CNN Newsroom host John King condemned him for exclusively focusing on matters of law and order to the exclusion of race-based police shootings and that efforts to portray a diverse party at the RNC were "a mirage."
Conducting the segment with GOP strategist Alice Stewart and a chyron that read, "America in Crisis: Trump makes inflammatory comments amid unrest, violence in cities," King derided, "He says 'I'm about law and order' and he's right, African-Americans would like less crime in their neighbors, Latino Americans would like less crime in their neighborhood but nowhere -- there was an opportunity for the president to say they would also like not to be pulled over because they are black and brown and they would like not to fear that their sons or daughters might get shot in the back seven times because they are black or brown."
After King asserted that police shoot people because of their skin color, a claim that the network's many fact-checkers won't care to assess, Stewart lamented Trump going "off message," but expressed hope that the campaign will get back to the "softer side of the president" that was presented at the RNC. King then criticized that point, "but it has to be genuine, does it not, because, forgive me, a lot of what we saw at the Republican convention was, in part a mirage."
As evidence, King offered, "
Thirty-six percent of the speakers at the convention were women, there are only 17%, we can show you the numbers here, in the Trump cabinet only 17% of the members are women and Republicans in congress only 10%, 23% of the Republican convention speakers were non-white, and only 13% of the Trump cabinet is not white and 6% of Republicans in Congress are not white so what they showed us at that convention was not the reality of the Trump Administration or the Republican Party at this moment in terms of diversity.
King's point is hardly original for CNN, but if it weren't for those speakers, the network would be portraying the RNC as being exclusively old white men. This is also the same network that thinks that John Kasich and Colin Powell endorsing Biden proves he has significant bipartisan appeal.
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Here is a transcript for the September 1 show:
CNN
CNN Newsroom
11:35 AM ET
JOHN KING: He's asked about -- he talks about criticizing Democratic mayors. He says that they are fools. He takes credit for things that he had nothing to do with. He also was talking there when he was asked do you want to do something to heal racial tensions? He says I do and then he says I'm about law and order and he's right, African-Americans would like less crime in their neighbors, Latino Americans would like less crime in their neighborhood but nowhere -- there was an opportunity for the president to say they would also like not to be pulled over because they are black and brown and they would like not to fear that their sons or daughters might get shot in the back seven times because they are black or brown. Where is that from this president?
ALICE STEWART: Well, that remains to be seen, John. Thanks for having me. Look, for a day like today that is billed as one for the president to go out and show compassion and concern and caring for the people that are hurting in Kenosha, what we just witnessed was what we call getting off message, and it's not very helpful. What we needed to take away from today was the president meeting with people, and as he said with pastors and expressing concern and, unfortunately, I feel as though this is what's going to get a lot of the headlines today, but the good thing is that what we saw out of the Republican convention and what I hope to see for next nine weeks is really a softer side of him. We had Melania talk about him. I think can a Kayleigh McEnany’s compassionate story was one that we hopefully will have much more because John, as you know, the -- this race will be decided by the independent swing state voters and those people right now want to see a softer side of the president. Look, we know that the base of Trump loves the brashness, they love the passion but the swing voters want permission to vote for this president, and the way that he goes about doing that is to show that he not only has policies of law and order and strength and peace through strength but he also does it in a way that makes them feel good about it which is really the message that the Trump campaign needs to put forth moving forward.KING: We’ve known each other a long time and I applaud your loyalty to your party and I understand a lot of Republicans, even Republicans who sometimes roll their eyes at the president understand how he does in November affects how all the other Republicans do in November but I get your point, show more heart, but it has to be genuine, does it not, because, forgive me, a lot of what we saw at the Republican convention was, in part a mirage and I say it in this context: 36% of the speakers at the convention were women, there are only 17%, we can show you the numbers here, in the Trump cabinet only 17% of the members are women and Republicans in congress only 10%. 23% of the Republican convention speakers were non-white, and only 13% of the Trump cabinet is not white and 6% of Republicans in congress are not white so what they showed us at that convention was not the reality of the Trump Administration or the Republican Party at this moment in terms of diversity.
