Richard Spencer On CNN: Trump’s Tweets Weren’t Racist Enough
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
White supremacist Richard Spencer said on CNN on Tuesday that he didn’t think President Trump’s racist tweets went far enough.
CNN reporter Sara Sidner interviewed Spencer for “The Lead with Jake Tapper” for a segment about white nationalists’ reactions to Trump’s statements telling Democratic congresswomen of color to “go back” to their ancestral countries.
Spencer, who has advocated for “peaceful ethnic cleansing,” used the platform to explain that he was in fact not happy with the tweets, saying Trump was playing a “con game” and won’t actually practice the white nationalism he’s preaching.
“He gives us nothing outside of racist tweets,” he said. “And by racist tweets, I mean tweets that are meaningless and cheap and express the kind of sentiments you might hear from your drunk uncle while he’s watching [Sean] Hannity.”
Joanna Mendelson, an investigative reporter at the Anti-Defamation League, was also interviewed, arguing that Trump’s tweets normalize hate.
Some online observers were critical of CNN giving Spencer a platform at all. Tapper stepped in on Twitter to defend his colleague.
.@sarasidnerCNN covers racists and white supremacists for us (among other subjects) and does a great job. She did a taped package for cnn about the reaction of white supremacists to the president’s tweets. Part of that included quoting these miscreants.
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) July 16, 2019
Alyssa Fisher is a writer at the Forward. Email her at [email protected], or follow her on Twitter at @alyssalfisher
I’m personally matching all gifts to the Forward, up to $36,000. Can I match your gift now?
Hello, fellow Forward reader! I’m Joel Brown, a Forward reader and supporter for more than 15 years, and currently the chair of the board of directors.
I’m an avid Forward reader because it ticks so many of my essential boxes: excellent journalism, Jewish focus and diverse viewpoints. In today’s political climate, what I most appreciate is the Forward’s independence — made possible by the generosity of its membership.
The Forward is committed to bringing you unbiased, nuanced Jewish news. From my position as board chair, I see an exciting future as we expand our position as the definitive independent voice of contemporary American Judaism.
— Joel Brown, Forward board chair
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
