Leave the U.S., Trump tells liberal Democratic congresswomen
Donald Trump on Twitter.
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Donald Trump has injected race into his criticism of liberal Democrats.
Trump tweeted Sunday that four congresswomen of color should go back to what he calls the "broken and crime infested" countries they came from. That ignores the fact that all four of the women are American citizens and three were born in the U.S.
Trump's attack has drawn a searing condemnation from Democrats who labeled the remarks racist and breathtakingly divisive.
Republicans have remained largely silent after Trump's morning broadsides against the four women. But the president's nativist tweets caused Democrats to set aside their internal rifts to rise up in a united chorus against the president.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the president wants to "make America white again." Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, jousting for days with Pelosi, said Trump "can't conceive of an America that includes us."
Trump was almost certainly referring to Ocasio-Cortez and her allies. The others are Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan.
A sampling of reaction to Trump's tweets:
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"Mr. President, 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. ... You are stoking white nationalism bc you are angry that people like us are serving in Congress and fighting against your hate-filled agenda." - Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota on Twitter.
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"Racial arsonist strikes again. Shut. Your. Reckless. Mouth. Racist attack on four strongly progressive congresswomen of color will not weaken them. IT ONLY MAKES US STRONGER." - Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York, chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, on Twitter.
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"You're going to have to ask the president what he means by those specific tweets." - Mark Morgan, acting commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, when asked about the tweets, on CBS' "Face the Nation."
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"To tell these American citizens (most of whom were born here) to 'go back' to the 'crime infested places from which they came' is racist and disgusting." - Rep. Justin Amash of Michigan, a Trump critic who announced this month he was leaving the Republican Party to become an independent.
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"This president is hurting our country and bigotry like he just spewed is something that we need to end in this nation." - New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, Democratic presidential candidate, speaking to reporters in Pelham, New Hampshire.
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"Let's be clear about what this vile comment is: A racist and xenophobic attack on Democratic congresswomen. This (asterisk)is(asterisk) their country, regardless of whether or not Trump realizes it. They should be treated with respect. As president, I'll make sure of it." - Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Democratic presidential candidate, on Twitter.
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"Unfortunately there is an American tradition of telling people to go back where they came from. It's a very bad tradition that we need to weed out of our nation because we are a nation of immigrants, that is who we are by our nature for hundreds of years. But you don't expect to hear it from the president of the United States." - New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, Democratic presidential candidate, on CNN's "State of the Union."
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"This is racist. These congresswomen are every bit as American as you - and represent our values better than you ever will." Former Texas Rep. Beto O'Rourke, Democratic presidential candidate, on Twitter.
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"Let's call the president's racist attack exactly what it is: un-American." California Sen. Kamala Harris, Democratic presidential candidate, on Twitter.
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"There's nothing new about denying the belonging of those who call our nation to its highest values and criticize those in power. Those who launch such attacks reveal that they do not understand what is greatest about America." - Pete Buttigieg, mayor of South Bend, Indiana, and Democratic presidential candidate, on Twitter.