- President Donald Trump has renewed attacks on four Democratic congresswomen of color he said should “go back and help fix” their “broken and crime infested” countries.
- “If Democrats want to unite around the foul language & racist hatred spewed from the mouths and actions of these very unpopular & unrepresentative Congresswomen, it will be interesting to see how it plays out,” he tweeted Monday.
- The tweets were directed at Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, and Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota. Of the four, only Omar, a US citizen born in Somalia, was born outside the US.
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President Donald Trump on Monday doubled down on criticism of Democratic congresswomen he subjected to attacks widely decried as racist.
“If Democrats want to unite around the foul language & racist hatred spewed from the mouths and actions of these very unpopular & unrepresentative Congresswomen, it will be interesting to see how it plays out,” he tweeted early Monday. “I can tell you that they have made Israel feel abandoned by the U.S.”
If Democrats want to unite around the foul language & racist hatred spewed from the mouths and actions of these very unpopular & unrepresentative Congresswomen, it will be interesting to see how it plays out. I can tell you that they have made Israel feel abandoned by the U.S.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 15, 2019
On Sunday, Trump wrote that a group of unnamed Democratic congresswoman should “go back and help fix” their “broken and crime infested” countries.
The attacks were widely believed to be directed at Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, and Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota. Of those, only Omar, now an American citizen, was born outside the US; her family was given asylum in the US after fleeing Somalia.
The four - nicknamed "the Squad" - have been among the most adamant opponents of Trump's hardline anti-immigration policy.
In another tweet Monday, Trump described the group's actions as "horrible" and "disgusting." He also positioned them against Israel.
When will the Radical Left Congresswomen apologize to our Country, the people of Israel and even to the Office of the President, for the foul language they have used, and the terrible things they have said. So many people are angry at them & their horrible & disgusting actions!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 15, 2019
Omar has faced criticism over her remarks on Israel. Ocasio-Cortez reportedly said in April that US policy toward Israel should change, following the reelection of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whom she compared to Trump.
Though Trump did not name the congresswomen, it was clear they were the subject of his attack because he mentioned their dispute last week with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, tweeting, "I'm sure that Nancy Pelosi would be very happy to quickly work out free travel arrangements!"
On Sunday, Pelosi defended the congresswomen, tweeting:
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.
Our diversity is our strength and our unity is our power. https://t.co/ODqqHneyES
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) July 14, 2019
Trump's tweets have also attracted international condemnation, with UK Prime Minister Theresa May's office in a statement Monday saying, "The prime minister's view is that the language used to refer to the women was completely unacceptable."
Ocasio-Cortez had last week accused Pelosi of singling out "newly elected women of color" for criticism as Democrats clashed over funding for a new border-security bill.
In his follow-up tweets Sunday, Trump seemed determined to further exploit the division.
"If the Democrat Party wants to continue to condone such disgraceful behavior, then we look even more forward to seeing you at the ballot box in 2020," he tweeted.