Reacting late Tuesday to White House Chief of Staff John Kelly’s comments about illegal immigrants and the DACA program, MSNBC’s The Last Word host Lawrence O’Donnell lashed out at Kelly as “the worst White House chief of staff in history” and someone who’s undoubtedly “full of hatred” like President Trump.
Upon hearing the soundbite of Kelly knocking illegals who didn’t apply for DACA status, an enraged O’Donnell screeched that “John Kelly works for the laziest President in history who might very well be the laziest federal worker in history” while the retired Marine General “is the worst White House chief of staff in history.”
O’Donnell’s grievances included falsely asserting that Trump caused the January government shutdown and that Kelly’s criticism of Democratic Congresswoman Fredericka Wilson (Fla.) and former President Obama was so awful that “[n]o other White House chief of staff in history has ever told such a poisonous lie about a member of Congress or about a former President.”
Therefore, he added that “we can no longer be surprised when John Kelly opens his mouth and ugly prejudice and poison comes out as it did again today.”
“There is not a shred of evidence now that John Kelly has even the slightest bit more sympathy or understanding of the Dreamers than Donald Trump has. There is not the slightest hint now that John Kelly’s heart is not as full of hatred as Donald Trump’s is for all of the people that Donald Trump rages against, from Mexicans to Muslims to undocumented immigrants, including children,” O’Donnell continued, on the verge of a breakdown.
Back during the Kelly-Wilson feud, O’Donnell argued with zero evidence that Kelly was a racist who “demonized” a “black woman” solely because of her skin color.
Moments later, immigration activist Marielena Hincapie praised O’Donnell, stating that Kelly’s comments were “simply outrageous” and proved that “he is out of touch with who young immigrants are.”
“He is clearly ignorant and that he shares Trump’s, [Stephen] Miller’s and [Steve] Bannon’s white nationalist views about immigrants. Kelly’s comments today are just as offensive as offensive as Trump’s racial slurs against Haitians and African immigrants,” claimed Hincapie.
For good measure, O’Donnell brought on faux Republican and new liberal Washington Post columnist Max Boot, who complained that the GOP “is now objectively a threat to the constitutional order, to the rule of law, to everything that we hold dear, because now the Republican Party is not just looking the other way at Donald Trump’s atrocious conduct and his inexcusable rhetoric, including, for example, calling Democrats treasonous.”
Boot hilariously emphasized that he’s “never been a cheerleader for Democrats,” but Trump has left him “delighted to see Democrats doing well because what it speaks to is this repudiation by a lot of the American people of everything that Donald Trump stands for and it’s really, I want — the Republican Party deserves what’s coming to it.”
To see the relevant transcript from MSNBC’s The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell on February 6, click “expand.”
MSNBC’s The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell
February 6, 2018
10:22 p.m. Eastern
LAWRENCE O’DONNELL: John Kelly works for the laziest President in history who might very well be the laziest federal worker in history. John Kelly is the worst White House chief of staff in history. His only possible competition for that distinction is the first Trump White House chief of staff Reince Priebus. But Reince Priebus did not help Donald Trump steer the government into a shutdown during his time as chief of staff. Reince Priebus did not insult and lie about a member of Congress and call her an empty barrel and lie about President Obama while he was at it and then refused to apologize to either President Obama or Congresswoman Frederica Wilson. Reince Priebus never did that, only John Kelly did that. No other White House chief of staff in history has ever told such a poisonous lie about a member of Congress or about a former President and so we can no longer be surprised when John Kelly opens his mouth and ugly prejudice and poison comes out as it did again today. There is not a shred of evidence now that John Kelly has even the slightest bit more sympathy or understanding of the Dreamers than Donald Trump has. There is not the slightest hint now that John Kelly’s heart is not as full of hatred as Donald Trump’s is for all of the people that Donald Trump rages against, from Mexicans to Muslims to undocumented immigrants, including children. If John Kelly is more enlightened than Donald Trump, if he is more humane than Donald Trump, if he is a more decent person than Donald Trump, why has he never said one word while in the service of Donald Trump to show us in any small way that he is not exactly the same as Donald Trump Donald Trump’s views hatred and never apologizes John Kelly in service to Donald Trump spews hatred and never apologizes. Tonight at the Capitol, when reporters questioned John Kelly about calling young immigrants lazy, he made no attempt to apologize, no attempt to clarify what he meant, instead he insisted that they just should have probably gotten off the couch and signed up for DACA.
(....)
MARIELENA HINCAPIE: It is simply outrageous. The comments made by Kelly just indicate that he is out of touch with who young immigrants are. He is clearly ignorant and that he shares Trump’s millers and Bannon’s white nationalist views about immigrants. Kelly’s comments today are just as offensive as offensive as Trump’s racial slurs against Haitians and African immigrants.
(....)
MAX BOOT: I worked on three Republican Presidential campaigns and finally resigned the party the day after Donald Trump was elected. I completely agree with what Ben Wittes and John Rauch have to say, which is the Republican Party is now objectively a threat to the constitutional order, to the rule of law, to everything that we hold dear, because now the Republican Party is not just looking the other way at Donald Trump’s atrocious conduct and his inexcusable rhetoric, including, for example, calling Democrats treasonous. But they are actively assisting him in obstructing justice. They are assisting him in an unprecedented assault against the Justice Department and the FBI and the men and women who keep us safe. This is so unconscionable, so shocking and it is being a countenance at the highest levels of the Republican Party, not just Trump but Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan, they could stop people like Devin Nunes. They can pass legislation to protect Robert Mueller. They refuse to do that. They’re becoming complicit in this unprecedented attempt to subvert the rule of law. For that reason, I completely agree, vote against Republicans because Republicans have shown they will not uphold our constitution against the unprecedented threat posed by Donald Trump.
(....)
BOOT: I’ve never been a cheerleader for Democrats, believe me, quite the opposite, but now I am delighted to see Democrats doing well because what it speaks to is this repudiation by a lot of the American people of everything that Donald Trump stands for. And it’s really, I want -- the Republican Party deserves what’s coming to it. What I hope it gets and it really deserves to be destroyed because it has sold its soul to somebody who is the most openly racist President we’ve ever had, a President who has made the most shocking and unprecedented assault on the rule of law of any President in American history, demonized the media, attacked the judiciary, tried to destroy every check and balance including up until now calling his political opposition treasonous and un-American. I mean, this is un-American, but this is what the Republican Party stands for.
