No one should be surprised.
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That it took Trump two days to walk back his widely debunked remark – and then walk back the walk-back – was worrying for Republicans who see such missteps as playing to Democrat Hillary Clinton’s advantage. It was a shocking incitement to political violence.
“I think that his personal style is so deep that he’s so used to this kind of shorthand and frankly, you’re dealing with a guy who carried 37 primaries and got 14 million votes, and it was a style that none of his Republican opponents could cope with”, Gingrich told the program. “And I never knew I was going to be running for office”.
We all understood exactly what he was saying. House Speaker Paul Ryan suggested that perhaps he was trying to be amusing. “Him and Hillary”, he explained.
A day later, Trump was equally unhinged at a Florida rally when he went on a weird rant about the terrorist Islamic State, also known as ISIS.
Trump ignited a furor at a Florida rally earlier this week when he made remarks about both Obama and Democratic presidential nominee and former U.S. Secretary of State Clinton in conjunction with ISIS, also known as the Islamic State or a second acronym, ISIL.
Here’s the quote, from the New York Times: “He’s the founder of ISIS”. They’re the founders. Reporter: And he lobbed the inflammatory accusation not once – These are the founders of Isis because of bad judgment. The founder. He founded ISIS.
Of course, Trump ignores the fact that ISIS, or the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, is the successor to the terrorist group Islamic State of Iraq, which was established before Obama’s presidency, and ISI itself was created out of al-Qaeda in Iraq.
“Trump’s divisive and risky actions are not only a threat to our other candidates, but to our party and the nation”, the letter stated.
Trump wasn’t backing off on Thursday, telling a nationally syndicated conservative talk radio host with regard to Clinton that “ISIS will hand her the MVP award”.
“You meant that he created the vacuum, he lost the peace”, Mr. Hewitt suggested, leaving Mr. Trump an opening.
As Hewitt suggested in the interview, it’s possible to argue that the administration’s withdrawing from Iraq, its lack of support to anti-Assad rebels in Syria and its decision to intervene in Libya enabled ISIS to expand.
Clinton posted on Twitter that Trump’s comments are disqualifying.
“If they want to do that they can save me a lot of time and a lot of energy”, he told Fox News.
Trump’s commentary also seemed to echo an opinion expressed by a leader he says he respects, Russian President Vladimir Putin. If the cheering crowds at his hate-filled rallies are happy, Trump is happy.
“I just keep doing the same thing I’m doing right now”, Trump said.
Moreover, immigration, Obamacare, and the economy are hardly the only issues favoring Trump.
Clinton has hit Republican nominee Donald Trump for not releasing his returns. If there is a trophy for Most Dishonest and Destructive, Trump is determined to retire it. “It is awesome. And it just shows how dialed-in this guy is and that’s why they’re so scared of him”. He claims that the striking down of discriminatory voter ID laws in North Carolina, Wisconsin and elsewhere would make this possible.
Republicans frequently trace the birth of Islamic State to the Obama administration’s decision to withdraw the last US forces from Iraq by the end of 2011.
After Trump doubled down on his claim on Thursday in multiple interviews, Clinton clearly had enough of what she called a “smear against President Obama” and responded with a series of tweets. “It could cost us the Supreme Court”.
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Trump wants to stoke anger, resentment and victimhood. He abases our democracy – and Republican elected officials abase themselves by supporting him. History will have no mercy for Trump’s enablers.
