Few Republicans Circle The Wagons On Trump’s Alleged Colorful Commentary
Did President Donald Trump use colorful language to call or allude that some Caribbean, Central American, and African nations are undesirable places to live and posed the question on why we should let more of them in? There are conflicting stories. Illinois Democratic Senator Dick Durbin lays out the controversial comments to the Chicago Tribune. South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said the comments were “basically true”. The President refuted the accusations saying that he isn’t a racist and said that the controversy was made up by the Democrats.
Never said anything derogatory about Haitians other than Haiti is, obviously, a very poor and troubled country. Never said “take them out.” Made up by Dems. I have a wonderful relationship with Haitians. Probably should record future meetings – unfortunately, no trust!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2018
Georgia’s junior Senator David Perdue (R), who was at the bi-partisan meeting along with his colleagues Sens. Durbin and Graham, initially said that he didn’t recall the President using the colorful term. In fact, he and his cohort in immigration reform policy, Senator Tom Cotton (R-KS), issued a joint statement stating they don’t remember the President those words. Senator Perdue stepped up his defense of the President during Sunday morning television where he insisted that Trump’s statements were a “gross misrepresentation”. Contrast that to Georgia’s senior Senator Johnny Isakson (R) who rebuked the comments made by the President if they were true.
Few Republicans are rushing to defend the President’s comments. However, it shouldn’t be a surprise that Senator Perdue is helping to circle the wagons around President Trump’s latest controversy since he is a primary ally of the President in the US Senate as well as leading the charge of immigration reform. As for the statement itself, I believe the only reason it’s controversial is because President Trump said it. The man could say the sky is blue and Democrats would deride his statement. However, I think there’s something more telling in Durbin’s recounting of the meeting from the Chicago Tribune:
And Durbin said Trump in the meeting called for more Europeans to be admitted to the U.S. “He said, ‘Put me down for one of the more Europeans to come to this country. Why don’t we get more people from Norway?’ “
I boil it down to this: “Why do we want more people from poor countries coming to the United States? Why don’t we get more people from these rich countries?” I don’t think it’s a matter of skin color, it seems like the comments were more about an immigrant’s pocketbook. The President is a rich guy, his friends are wealthy, so I believe he’s more impressed by a person’s wealth more than anything else.
The President’s statements were off-putting for a someone in his position. His sentiment towards those trying to find opportunity in a new homeland is disappointing. Our ideals, in spite of our shortcomings, make us attractive to the citizens who live in impoverished, oppressive nations. We should be willing to welcome those who long for freedom regardless if they are from Norway, the United Kingdom, Thailand, Zimbabwe, or Venezuela. The United States has always stood as a beacon of hope, opportunity, and freedom. I hope that we continue to keep that lamp lit by the golden door.
About Author
nsmith
Father. IT Geek. Former 14th District GOP Chairman (2015-2017). Former Walker GOP Chairman (2009-2013). Resident of Chamblee. American. Georgian. Conservative.
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Trump must have a YUUUUGE lap because he has so many lapdogs (Sessions, Perdue, etc etc). I blame the GOP, and the voters who were fooled by his populist rhetoric.
Tell me, was it your intention to vote in a regime that will, if not stopped, open all the public lands and offshore areas for exploitation by large capitalist factories and mines? Will you vote GOP again when fracking comes to North Georgia? Will you vote again when Cohutta is deforested and McMansions installed, along with gated communities no local can afford?
GOP controls the entire nation except for the judiciary. How is that abortion repeal going? Hows that deficit spending feel? How does your Christian wife feel about that Pussy Grabber in Chief, who has to pay off porn stars to hush about their 3 ways?
How does it feel to wallow with the sinners, while trying to keep your petticoats white?
How does it feel to be on the wrong side of history because you think Fox is News? How does it feel?
It doesn’t do well to try to Trumpsplain this away. You’re making the same base mistake of racial (or ethnic) discrimination- projecting qualities of “better” or “worse” upon a whole populace based upon what? You think Trump didn’t have skin color in mind? He clearly had country of origin in his mind, and that country of origin is clearly associated to skin color. He could have made his comments based clearly upon wealth, or even named preferences for more wealthy Latin countries, or Caribbean countries, or African countries. Or best yet, if it was truly based upon wealth- he would have said he wanted rich individuals- and they live in every country btw. There’s no getting around this- there were generalized judgments projected upon whole populaces based upon country of origin. 99% likely based upon skin color, 100% based upon country of origin. Generalizations based upon country of origin are in fact racism. It should not be attempted to be justified or explained away.
And I will add today- an immigration policy based upon wealth- is that even worth arguing for? How about we try to get people with good character content? Wealth does not correlate s0 well to good character.
Immigration based on wealth is already US policy: “In a Beijing ballroom, Kushner family pushes $500,000 “investor visa” to wealthy Chinese.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/in-a-beijing-ballroom-kushner-family-flogs-500000-investor-visa-to-wealthy-chinese/2017/05/06/cf711e53-eb49-4f9a-8dea-3cd836fcf287_story.html?utm_term=.870d74643da3
As a footnote to the correlation of wealth and character: See Jesus.
As a footnote to your footnote and germane to this discussion take a gander at my current avatar chosen a couple of weeks ago to respond in another forum but also relevant in a discussion with our resident Trumpster. How come this face is never seen on toast?
It is the face of what a forensic anthropologist came up with for the BBC as a better representation for a descendant of Judah at the time of the historical Jesus. I’m sure the President and his two Corinthians still envision him as the traditional fair-haired, blue-eyed transformation of Zeus depictions with which we are more familiar. I’m also pretty sure that along with the Romans the President would have labeled the historical Galilee as a sh*thole.
Or simply not identified any specific countries. It’s a party so permeated with racism and that many don’t even recognize it. Like a 60+ year old southerner pretending that his referring to the Obamas as “uppity” is racist, at least subconsciously.
This President that goes out of his way to denigrate and insult.
Even to say “I have a great relationship with (insert a group or population here)” is a race-based generalization, i.e. racism. It’s all so indefensible that any defense renders the defenders to be not credible.
Correct me if I’m wrong on the timeline, but I don’t think a firm Trump public denial that he’d said the word occurred until after Perdue and Cotton had changed fron don’t recall to an emphatic no he did not. It’s how the party rolls.
“I believe the only reason it’s controversial is because President Trump said it.”
Yeah, it would have been totally different and the media would have completely ignored it had Obama referred to a couple of North American neighbor nations and a whole continent as “s—hole” countries.
” I believe the only reason it’s controversial is because President Trump said it.
Suuure…. the ONLY reason.
Impossible to fathom that it could be the message itself, therefore it has to be the messenger.
No other explanation for it.
Trumpsplainin’ at its finest.
I was already pretty aware that David Perdue is a moron, and now he is a lying moron. There are multitudes of people who were there that said it happened…on both sides of the aisle, so the stupid moron (Perdue…because so many morons involved I have to make sure you get the right one identified) is caught flat out lying. Also he and Cotton were invited at the last minute by Stephen Miller, the resident xenophobe / aspiring Hitler Youth member, because he was worried Trump would go with the bi-partisan compromise that had been worked out
He hates the debt when it means spending on social safety net programs, but has no problem when its a tax cut that lines his own pockets (those commercials will write themselves when he is up in 2020).
Also…with Trumps underwater approval in GA its not the smartest move to glue yourself to Trump…but, again, he is a moron so what do you expect. If he draws a credible democratic challenger he is toast.
+1
Does anybody actually doubt that he said these things? Norwegians have very little reason to want to come here when their own country is safer, more prosperous, and healthier than ours. People emigrate to improve their lives, not to help white supremacists maintain an illusion of racial majority.
Everybody knows he said this. Everybody knows what it meant. Everybody already knew he felt this way.
He had just met with the Norwegian President…thats the only way I figure he spit out Norway…it was still trapped in his tiny brain
I guess you could try to make that case if this was an isolated incident. But the list of racist remarks and actions is so comprehensive and consistent that this is just another on the list. There can be no doubt. Like most racists (I suspect) he doesn’t know or believe he is one. Because he is ignorant to what that might mean. He has never had to worry about it, he just pays lawyers to make his problems go away.
As a native New Yorker, I came across a person here or there that didn’t think they were racist because they were willing to offend, or did offend, anybody else at all, regardless of race or ethnicity. You know, the “equal opportunity offender”. Similarly, there is the idea that the person being racist was just being direct, or blunt. But it’s the assumed reality underneath that bluntness that made them racist. The Pres. also thinks he can’t be racist if Don King is his friend. So he is likely swimming in his own delusions on this issue.
Your storyline paraphrases Perdue as saying it was a “gross misrepresentation”.
Is there any particular reason the full comment wasn’t quoted ? Is there a word count to abide by ?
Perdue to George S. – “I am telling you that he did not use that word. And I’m telling you it’s a gross misrepresentation.”
That’s a far cry from Fridays joint statement of “we do not recall”.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Monday said his “memory hasn’t evolved” on the meeting where President Donald Trump reportedly questioned why the U.S. allows in people from “shithole” countries, according to a local news report.
So is GOP senator Graham taking veiled shots at a fellow GOP senator for sport ?