To call into question the legitimacy of one’s patriotism is not a racial smear. This especially rings true when the individuals in the crossfire have made denigrating remarks on the public record concerning the country they represent in the United States Congress (and her people). However, CNN and the media mob have a different viewpoint entirely, branding President Trump as a “racist” for telling the famed freshman “squad” in Congress that they “leave the country” if they truly harbor resentment for it.
A war of words took to new heights on Monday between President Trump and four freshmen House Democrats when the President responded to attacks directed at him from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY), Ilhan Omar (MN), Ayanna Pressley (MA), and Rashida Tlaib (MI). On CNN’s The Situation Room, Wolf Blitzer could hardly wait to pounce on the race card and made CNN part of the story after the women held a press conference:
Very, very strong statements, you know, Abby, and you cover the White House, and you yourself have been the target of some of the President's criticism. All of us remember a few months ago when he went after you and said you ask a lot of stupid questions. He went after April Ryan, one of our contributors, also an African-American, you felt that personal wrath from the President yourself?
CNN White House correspondent Abby Phillip retorted with a distortion of the President’s words. “He only — the only way one would assume that those four women were not Americans or that they were not from here is because they don't look like they're from here, according to President Trump…”
The racial rhetoric was ramped up even further moments later in the program courtesy of CNN contributor and former Obama official Susan Hennessey with a vile interpretation of the message the President gave (click “expand”):
He said go back to the country you came from because what this President offers is a vision that said that full American citizenship is for white people and everybody else has some other lesser form of American citizenship. That’s racist. There is no other term to describe that and I don't think the Democrats are going to be able to counter that message in the next election unless they can name it and speak about it clearly and I think we're seeing the congresswomen we saw today struggling, you know, to do that very thing. I do think obviously Donald Trump is currently the President and has sort of captured the Republican Party, Trump-fied the Republican party. I do think we to ask what is the future of the Republican Party is? Is it really tweets like this or is it a vision offered like Will Hurd who sat here earlier and denounced the comments while still adhering to traditional conservative values.
Blitzer then took the liberty to interview Talib moments after the presser to shower her with sympathy and softball questions. Here’s just two of them:
I just want to get to some of these sensitive issues and you could share your thoughts, have you personally been receiving death threats as a result of what the President has been leveling?
(…)
You're a child of immigrants here to the United States. I'm a child of immigrants here to the United States as well. And all of us can relate specifically to what's going on, because I'm sure you've heard basically most of your life go back where you came from. Talk a little bit about that.
Clearly, the hysteria is alive and well throughout the hallways of CNN as they scramble to twist anything the President says and depict it as racially insensitive while promoting their liberal allies.
Transcript below:
CNN’s The Situation Room
07/15/19
5:40 p.m. EasternWOLF BLITZER: So we just heard from the four Democratic congresswomen responding to the President of the United States who bitterly attacked all four of them over the past couple days and let's get analysis right away. Very, very strong statements, you know, Abby, and you cover the White House, and you yourself have been the target of some of the President's criticism. All of us remember a few months ago when he went after you and said you ask a lot of stupid questions. He went after April Ryan, one of our contributors, also an African-American, you felt that personal wrath from the President yourself?
ABBY PHILLIP: That is right and I think that the President is no stranger to simply just attacking a lot of people and a lot of people at this point have felt his personal comments directed at them. I think in this case what you're seeing happening here with President Trump is that he made a comment that is clearly indefensible. He only — the only way one would assume that those four women were not Americans or that they were not from here is because they don't look like they're from here, according to President Trump and so now the conversation is shifting, President Trump is changing the conversation to making it about socialism, making it about terrorism, making it about Medicare for all, and that is not what any of this was about. So what you saw, I think in this press conference was actually a fair amount of restraint. I think you saw the four lawmakers trying to redirect the conversation back to what the original tweet implied which is they were not American for some reason, for whatever reason President Trump thought they weren't and I think it is — the last point that Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez made is very important. The President may have wanted to attack them on policies but he didn't and now he's trying to redirect that conversation but his first instinct is to go toward personal attacks and that is why Republicans are having such a hard time defending these comments because they were not about policies at all.
BLITZER: And it is interesting, Ilhan Omar, the Congresswoman from Minnesota, Gloria, she refused to respond to the specific attacks by the President saying she was not going to dignify those horrendous words.
GLORIA BORGER: Right and that’s what Abby said there was a certain amount of restraint here obviously, but during this press conference, the president just tweeted and made it very clear what this was always all about for him, which was a political play. And he said this is in telling us what a great tact is he is, he said: “The Dems were trying to distance themselves from the four ‘progressives,’ but now they are forced to embrace them. That means they are endorsing Socialism, hate of Israel and the USA! Not good for the Democrats!” And so this is where the President is coming from on this. I think — AOC said it in an interesting way. She said it is not the policy. You know, he can't, you know, he can't defend his policy so he's attacking us personally and, yes, the Democrats are now unified with these four women, but he also stopped complete fratricide in the Democratic Party in the House, which was stopped dead in its tracks because everybody was in unison responding to the racist comments and the context here is so important. This comes after the raids, the round-ups this weekend, we still don't know how many there were or whether they were real or imagined to be honest. The President hosted right-wing media last week over at the White House and you had the whole citizenship question. So put that altogether, put this President's tweet there and about these women and then see what he's saying today and you understand that he's playing base politics and he thinks this works for him and he thinks it is hilarious that the Democrats are now defending these women against charges of a racist President.
BLITZER: And he just tweeted also: “We will never be a Socialist or Communist Country. IF YOU ARE NOT HAPPY HERE, YOU CAN LEAVE! It is your choice, and your choice alone. This is about love for America. Certain people HATE our Country” That is the accusations he's delivering against these four Democratic lawmakers.
SUSAN HENNESSEY: But, again, this is just distraction. It’s trying to pretend as though what he was really going after was because they’re socialists or they have some sort of policy. That is not what he said. He said go back to the country you came from because what this President offers is a vision that said that full American citizenship is for white people and everybody else has some other lesser form of American citizenship. That’s racist. There is no other term to describe that and I don't think the Democrats are going to be able to counter that message in the next election unless they can name it and speak about it clearly and I think we're seeing the congresswomen we saw today struggling, you know, to do that very thing. I do think obviously Donald Trump is currently the President and has sort of captured the Republican Party, Trump-fied the Republican party. I do think we to ask what is the future of the Republican Party is? Is it really tweets like this or is it a vision offered like Will Hurd who sat here earlier and denounced the comments while still adhering to traditional conservative values.
BLITZER: Everybody stick around. There’s a lot more to discuss. But joining us now from capitol hill is one of the Democratic Congresswomen who was personally attacked by the president, representative Rashida Tlaib of Michigan. She’s a member of the Oversight committee. Congresswoman, thanks so much for taking a few minutes and joining us.
CONGRESSWOMAN RASHIDA TLAIB (D-MI): Thank you for having me.
BLITZER: I just want to get to some of these sensitive issues and you could share your thoughts, have you personally been receiving death threats as a result of what the President has been leveling?
[TLAIB]
BLITZER: Are you concerned about your safety?
[TLAIB]
BLITZER: We just spoke to Congressman Will Hurd of Texas. He's a Republican. He bitterly attacked and criticized the President for what he called these racist and xenophobic statements but have you or any colleagues among the fourth of you received direct communication from the Republican leadership in the House of Representatives?
[TLAIB]
BLITZER: Have you heard from Kevin McCarthy, the minority leader in the House?
[TLAIB]
BLITZER: The whole nature of what is going on right now, did you ever anticipate you would face these kind of questions that you would be personally attacked the way you have been by the President of the United States?
[TLAIB]
BLITZER: You're a child of immigrants here to the United States. I'm a child of immigrants here to the United States as well. And all of us can relate specifically to what's going on, because I'm sure you've heard basically most of your life go back where you came from. Talk a little bit about that.
[TLAIB]
BLITZER: As you point out, you are the first of two Muslim women to serve in the United States Congress. Why do you think President Trump specifically chose to paint the two of you as disloyal? He just tweeted, by the way, a few moments ago, “certain people hate our country.”
