Hours after confusingly connecting the devastating mass shootings over the weekend to a need for immigration reform, Donald Trump delivered a slightly more appropriate speech on Monday, describing the attacks as “domestic terrorism.”
Twitter was still largely unimpressed with his remarks, though, mostly because the president’s uncharacteristically presidential speech ended with an unintentional punchline: he offered his condolences to the wrong Ohio town.
To his credit (or, more accurately, to the credit of his speech writer), Trump clearly denounced racism, bigotry, and white supremacy at the beginning of his address.
Related: Celebs & Politicians React To Mass Shootings In El Paso & Dayton
He said at the Diplomatic Room in the White House:
“In one voice, our nation must condemn racism, bigotry and white supremacy. These sinister ideologies must be defeated. Hate has no place in America. Hatred warps the mind, ravages the heart and devours the soul.”
The words were shocking, coming from the mouth of the man who, hours earlier, shamelessly attempted to use the tragedy as a platform to pass his precious immigration legislation.
In a series of tweets earlier that day, the Commander in Chief called on lawmakers to pass “strong background checks” on gun purchases, suggesting how they could possibly marry the potential legislation “with desperately needed immigration reform.”
….this legislation with desperately needed immigration reform. We must have something good, if not GREAT, come out of these two tragic events!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 5, 2019
It was an odd link to draw, seeing as the gunman behind El Paso’s tragic WalMart rampage — which resulted in at least 21 deaths — is said to be a white supremacist.
Authorities say they believe suspected shooter penned a racist, anti-immigrant document that has a “nexus to a potential hate crime.” The four-page document posted online reportedly contains white nationalist and racist views against immigrants and Hispanics, blaming immigrants and first-generation Americans for taking jobs away and blending of cultures in the country.
It’s safe to assume a man of this nature would fully support tighter immigration laws, so the fact that Trump’s initial reaction was to loop in litigation the shooter would likely endorse is… alarming to say the least.
Related: Trump Called Out Over His Bigoted Portrayal Of West Baltimore
Trump didn’t link the shootings to a need for an immigration crackdown in his public address, thankfully, but critics still found it hard to take his speech seriously — especially since it ended with the president offering condolences to the victims of a shooting in Toledo, Ohio, when he meant Dayton, Ohio.
He closed his speech by saying:
“May God bless the memory of those who perished in Toledo.”
Smh…
The reaction to Trump’s mistake was swift, with a number of prominent users claiming it suggested just how little he cares about the safety and security of his citizens.
Newsweek columnist Seth Abramson tweeted:
“It doesn’t matter whether Trump says ‘Toledo’ or ‘Dayton’ because the notion he cares about the safety and security of either is a farce He wants Ohio’s electoral votes, and his consideration of the safety of Ohioans ends there”
CNN’s Brian Stelter also chimed in, observing:
“It is strange watching this speech being analyzed as a serious text when the president got the name of the city wrong at the end. Presumably someone on his staff wrote Toledo instead of Dayton, and no one caught it, not even the president.”
Conservatives were also astounded by Trump’s gaffe. Conservative commentator Joe Walsh wrote:
“Toledo?! Really? He can’t even get the most basic facts right.”
Even presidential candidate and Ohio native Tim Ryan expressed frustration over Trump’s Ohio error, tweeting:
“Toledo. Fck me.”
Embarrassingly enough, Toledo started trending on Twitter after Trump’s address — which included a bit where he partly blamed the shootings on the violence depicted in “grizzly video games.” He added:
“This includes the gruesome and grizzly video games that are now commonplace. It is too easy today for troubled youth to surround themselves with a culture that celebrates violence. We must stop or substantially reduce this and it has to begin immediately.”
The president also defended the second amendment in his speech, adding that “mental illness and hatred pull the trigger, not the gun.”
Watch his full remarks (below).
As we reported, the U.S. was rocked by two deadly mass shootings in less than 24 hours. The first shooting at an El Paso Walmart and mall claimed the lives of at least 21 people, before an early Sunday morning incident outside a nightclub in Dayton, Ohio, resulted in another 10 lives — including the suspect’s.
The accused El Paso shooter, is now facing capital murder charges. Our hearts go out to the victims’ families as police continue to search for a motive in the Ohio shooting.
[Image via Politico]
Related Posts
-
Categories
