The House of Representatives in the United States will vote on a resolution condemning the President over what observers have labeled xenophobic and racist tweets this past weekend.
In a letter to Democratic colleagues, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said President Trump had gone beyond his own low standards using disgraceful language about Members of Congress. The most egregious of the President’s tweets targeted four minority democratic congresswomen critical of his administration, telling them to go back to where they came from.
In Pelosi’s letter to members of her caucus, she accused the President of doubling down on his attacks against four colleagues and warned that members of her party in Congress would continue to forcefully respond to what she labeled disgusting attacks.
In the tweet that set off the firestorm the President incorrectly said the four progressive congresswomen originally came from countries that are a complete and total catastrophe, slamming them for criticizing how the US Government is being run and suggesting they go back to help fix the crime infested places from which they came.
Below is his interaction with journalists outside the White House.
Reporter: “Mr. President, the Democratic congresswomen are not American?”
Trump: “If somebody has a problem with our country, if somebody doesn’t want to be in our country, they should leave.”
Reporter: “Mr. President, some Republicans are saying–”
Trump: “Let me tell you; let me just tell you: when you look at her statements on al-Qaeda — did you see the statements on al-Qaeda? — when you look at her statements about people.”
Of the four Congresswomen – Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts , Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York where all born in the United States. Ilhan Omar was born in Somalia coming to the United States as a refugee and later becoming a citizen.
Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez weighed in, “It’s unfortunate that he feels the way he feels about people of colour in this country. It’s unfortunate the way he feels about immigrants, naturalized citizens are not in this country. But, I think what I would tell him is that it’s time to move on from him, and it’s time to move on from a conception of an America that we have tried to move past from, for a long time.”
The House resolution is being drafted by other members of Congress who were also born abroad as race relations continue to suffer in the country. Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortex asked if this was a deliberate move by the President.
“Absolutely. It is. It is, and that is because he relies on racism, division, and anti-immigrant sentiment to consolidate power because he does not have a positive vision for the future of America. This president does not believe in an America where healthcare is right. He does not believe in an America that offers a dignified education to all people regardless of income. He doesn’t believe in a prosperous future for our country. He believes that everything is a threat. And I, just don’t think from a leadership perspective, that’s a strong place to operate from.”
President Trump Monday doubling down with fresh tweets, accusing the four of making Israel feel abandoned by the United States, accusing them of being anti-Semitic, a bunch of communists and anti-American. Speaker Pelosi over the weekend accused the President of trying to make America White Again, a similar attack line she used in describing the administration’s attempts to include a citizenship question on the country’s census, which experts said would affect minority participation across the United States.
While large numbers of Democrats have criticized the President’s tweets, less than a handful of Republican members of Congress have taken him to task.
