Trump Asks If George Washington Statue Should Come Down And Twitter Erupts
Donald Trump attacked the "far-left" during a Tuesday press conference regarding their actions at the "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. Trump likened President George Washington to Confederate General Robert E. Lee and questioned whether liberal protestors will next fight for the removal of a statue of Washington because he was a slave owner.
Trump said, "This week, it is Robert E. Lee, I noticed that Stonewall Jackson's coming down. I wonder, is it George Washington next?"
Trump continued, "George Washington was a slave owner — wasn't George Washington a slave owner? So, will George Washington now lose his status? Are we going to take down statues to George Washington? How about Thomas Jefferson? ... He was a major slave owner! Now, are we going to take down his statue?"
He concluded, "You're changing history, you're changing culture."
Adolf tRump is trying to appease his Nazi followers in this stunt where he equates Robert E Lee to George Washington pic.twitter.com/PR3IjTa6aD
— McSpocky™ __ (@mcspocky) August 15, 2017
President Trump: George Washington was a slave owner. Are going to take down statues of George Washington? https://t.co/F72eiayurx
— CNN (@CNN) August 15, 2017
Twitter users weren't having Trump's comments that equated Washington to Lee. Following Trump's comparison, the first president quickly became the top trending topic on the social media website.
Alexandra Petri, a reporter for the Washington Post, used facts to support her opposing tweet towards the president's comments.
"George Washington owned slaves. but he also freed them in his will, favored* ending slavery & didn't fight a war to preserve the institution," she wrote.
A second user wrote, "Trump literally just compared Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson to George Washington and Thomas Jefferson; that encapsulates his stupidity."
A third user said the government should take extreme measures after Trump's Washington comments, saying, "If the GOP congress had any morals, any pride, any patriotism, they would impeach Trump before the end of the day."
Celebrities also criticized Trump's comments. Michael Moore tweeted, "OMG. What did we just watch? He blamed the anti-racism protesters. He likened George Washington to Robert E. Lee. Donald. Trump. F—. You."
John Mayer wrote about Trump's comments in a series of tweets, saying, "You attempt to counter something you can't believe you've just heard, but you have to drop it in exchange for another incoming offense. You're listening to your president speak."
Jimmy Kimmel also tweeted, "I haven't seen anything that crazy since Tyson bit Holyfield @realDonaldTrump."
There were tweets in favor of Trump's Washington argument. One user wrote in a tweet, "Trump’s quote on George Washington was dead on. If the liberals had their way, they probably would want statues of him taken down."
During Tuesday's press conference, he also discussed the "horrible day" that occurred from two "very violent" groups. Trump said, "They [the alt-left] came charging with swinging clubs, as at you say, the alt-right. Do they have any semblance of guilt?"
The "horrible day" Trump referred to occurred Saturday in Charlottesville after several white supremacists fled to the predominantly liberal city to show their support for the statue of the Confederate general. The rally, which was also attended by counter-protestors, resulted in a violent melee that took the life of a counter-protestor Heather Heyer. She was plowed down by an alt-right advocate who also injured several other counter-protestors during the incident.
Virginia's Governor Terry McAuliffe declared a state of emergency following the violence that occurred at Saturday's rally, which Trump publicly confirmed his support for the governor's decision after a phone conversation with McAuliffe. Trump and McAullife agreed "the hate and division must stop."
Trump condemned the actions of the far-right who behaved violently at Saturday's protest during a press conference, to which he urged that what's "vital now is a swift restoration of law and order and the protection of innocent lives." However, he claimed Tuesday the "far-left" is equally to blame for the violence that occurred.
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