Trump’s attacks on four Democrat politicians slammed for racism
US President Donald Trump told a group of Democratic congresswomen including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar and Ayanna Pressley to ‘go back’ to the countries they came from, even though all are US citizens.
US President Donald Trump directed a clearly racist tweet at rival politicians on Sunday, provoking disgust and angry responses from the women he targeted.
Trump said the four female Democratic representatives, who are all people of colour and US citizens, should “go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came”.
The four freshman congresswomen –– whose names were not mentioned in Trump’s tweets –– are Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib and Ayanna Pressley.
Ocasio-Cortez was born in the Bronx, New York, while Rashida Tlaib was born in Michigan.
African-American Ayanna Pressley was born in Ohio and only Ilhan Omar is an immigrant, who became a citizen in 2000 when she was 17 years old
The quartet sit on the progressive end of the Democrat party and have been fierce opponents of the Trump administration.
So interesting to see “Progressive” Democrat Congresswomen, who originally came from countries whose governments are a complete and total catastrophe, the worst, most corrupt and inept anywhere in the world (if they even have a functioning government at all), now loudly......
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 14, 2019
....it is done. These places need your help badly, you can’t leave fast enough. I’m sure that Nancy Pelosi would be very happy to quickly work out free travel arrangements!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 14, 2019
The four women visited detention camps in the south of the US last week and slammed the treatment of asylum seekers inside.
Responding to the Trump tweet, Ocasio-Cortez wrote that the country she “come(s) from” and swears to is the US, and that Trump is right in calling it a corrupt country now that he is in power and has ruined the immigration system.
She further suggested that the source of Trump’s anger is the fact that voters have chosen women of colour to represent their concerns, in a nod to diversity and equality.
You are angry because you don’t believe in an America where I represent New York 14, where the good people of Minnesota elected @IlhanMN, where @RashidaTlaib fights for Michigan families, where @AyannaPressley champions little girls in Boston.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) July 14, 2019
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Ayanna Pressley, the Massachusetts congresswoman who was attacked by Trump alongside Ocasio-Cortez also tweeted her protest, calling Trump a “racist” and holding her ground, saying “we’re not going anywhere”.
THIS is what racism looks like. WE are what democracy looks like. And we’re not going anywhere. Except back to DC to fight for the families you marginalize and vilify everyday. pic.twitter.com/vYzoxCgN0X
— Ayanna Pressley (@AyannaPressley) July 14, 2019
Ilhan Omar called Trump “the worst, most corrupt and inept” president that the US has ever seen and in her response on Twitter included a quote from Bobby Kennedy, in which he says: “America's answer to the intolerant man is diversity, the very diversity which our heritage of religious freedom has inspired.”
Omar said she only had an allegiance to the US and that Trump is “stoking white nationalism (because) you are angry that people like us are serving in Congress and fighting against your hate-filled agenda”.
Mr. President,
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) July 14, 2019
As Members of Congress, the only country we swear an oath to is the United States.
Which is why we are fighting to protect it from the worst, most corrupt and inept president we have ever seen. https://t.co/FBygHa2QTt
Rashida Tlaib has also responded strongly to Trump’s racist attack on herself and her colleagues, calling him a “failure” and asking for his impeachment.
Want a response to a lawless & complete failure of a President?
— Rashida Tlaib (@RashidaTlaib) July 14, 2019
He is the crisis.
His dangerous ideology is the crisis.
He needs to be impeached.
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi who has in the past had strong disagreements with the four women, known as ‘the Squad’ in Washington circles, has stood by them, pointing out Trump’s purported hypocrisy in a tweet.
She said that the US president’s plan to ‘Make America Great Again’ “has always been about making America white again”.
When @realDonaldTrump tells four American Congresswomen to go back to their countries, he reaffirms his plan to “Make America Great Again” has always been about making America white again.
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) July 14, 2019
Our diversity is our strength and our unity is our power. https://t.co/ODqqHneyES
Conservatives also expressed anger at Trump’s tweets.
Republican strategist and political commentator Ana Navarro-Cardenas, who describes herself as a “proud Nicaraguan-American, loving my hyphenated life” was also critical of Trump.
In a scathing tweet, she pointed out that Trump’s wives were also immigrants to the US, albeit white. She also said that the Democrats Trump was targeting “pay taxes”, unlike the Republican leader, who has yet to present his past tax returns for public scrutiny.
@AOC was born in New York. @RashidaTlaib was born in Michigan. @AyannaPressley was born in Ohio. @IlhanMN is a naturalized American, like 2 of Trump’s wives (so far). They’re just as American as the Trump Family. Only difference is they pay taxes and are not white...or orange. https://t.co/CfrbSlS0Jd
— Ana Navarro-Cárdenas (@ananavarro) July 14, 2019