White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was asked during her briefing with reporters Wednesday about Donald Trump asking, about Kamala Harris, “Is she Indian or is she Black?” and making other derisive comments. She responded with disbelief, initially murmuring, “Wow.” Jean-Pierre called what Trump said at a meeting of the National Association of Black Journalists in Chicago “repulsive” and said, “It’s insulting, and no one has any right to tell someone who they are how they identify.”
Quick Read
- White House calls Trump comments about Harris’ race ‘repulsive’
- White House Reaction: Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre condemned Donald Trump’s comments about Kamala Harris’ race as “repulsive” and “insulting” during her Wednesday briefing. She emphasized that identity is a personal decision and criticized anyone who questions it.
- Trump explains Vance selection amid scrutiny
- VP Pick Justification: At the NABJ conference, Trump defended his choice of JD Vance as running mate, citing Vance’s working-class background and intelligence despite his lack of a well-connected family. The selection has faced criticism due to Vance’s controversial past remarks.
- Trump says he would step down if health becomes an issue
- Health and Leadership: Trump stated he would step down if health issues arise, challenging Kamala Harris to a cognitive test and accusing her of failing the bar exam on her first attempt. Harris eventually passed and became a prominent legal and political figure.
- Trump unfamiliar with killing of Sonya Massey
- Massey Incident Ignorance: Trump admitted unfamiliarity with the recent killing of Sonya Massey by a white sheriff’s deputy, leading to groans from the audience. Massey’s death has been publicly mourned by Biden and Harris.
- Trump questions Harris’ race at Black journalists’ gathering
- Race Comments: Trump falsely questioned Harris’ race during his appearance at the NABJ convention, claiming she had only promoted her Indian heritage before. The event quickly became heated as Trump sparred with ABC News’ Rachel Scott over his past remarks on race.
- Sousaphones Against Hate protest Trump’s appearance
- Protesters: Activists, including the group Sousaphones Against Hate, protested outside the NABJ venue in Chicago, playing instruments and chanting against Trump’s presence.
- Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff rallies Democrats in New Hampshire
- Campaign Message: Doug Emhoff, Kamala Harris’ husband, rallied Democrats in New Hampshire, emphasizing the importance of reproductive rights and other freedoms, framing the election as a choice between progress and a “hellscape.”
- Activists protest Trump’s appearance in Chicago
- Chicago Protests: Dozens of activists protested Trump’s appearance, carrying Palestinian flags and chanting against his presence. The demonstration was met with a heavy police presence.
- Campaigns spar over appearances before Black journalists
- Event Controversy: The Harris campaign criticized Trump’s appearance at the NABJ convention, accusing him of lying about his record and pandering to Black voters. The NABJ is in discussions to have Harris appear virtually or in person for a conversation in September.
The Associated Press has the story:
White House calls Trump comments about Harris’ race ‘repulsive’
Newslooks- WASHINGTON- (AP)
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was asked during her briefing with reporters Wednesday about Donald Trump asking, about Kamala Harris, “Is she Indian or is she Black?” and making other derisive comments. She responded with disbelief, initially murmuring, “Wow.” Jean-Pierre called what Trump said at a meeting of the National Association of Black Journalists in Chicago “repulsive” and said, “It’s insulting, and no one has any right to tell someone who they are how they identify.”
“That is no one’s right. It is someone’s own decision,” said Jean-Pierre, who said she was speaking “as a person of color, as a Black woman who is in this position, that is standing before you at this podium behind this lectern” in the White House briefing room. “Only she can speak to her experience. Only she can speak to what it’s like,” Jean-Pierre said of Harris. “And I think it’s insulting for anybody — it doesn’t matter if it’s a former leader or former president, it is insulting.”
Trump explains why he chose Vance as running mate
Donald Trump was questioned Wednesday at the conference of the National Association of Black Journalists about his vice presidential running mate, JD Vance, and Vance’s history of comments about the value of women or couples who don’t have children. Asked why he chose Vance, Trump said it was because he represents a working-class upbringing. “He’s a very smart guy without the benefit of having a family that has contact with a father that is well-connected,” the former president said. “I respect people for their success.”
Kadia Goba, of Semafor, received light applause when she noted that Trump was divorced and that Vance “may have opinions” about divorced people. Trump received laughs and gasps when he said that Vance would also have opinions about childless people when he said “people like yourself” in response to Goba. Asked if he, like Biden, would step down as president or presidential candidate if his health were to become an issue, Trump said Wednesday that he would and challenged Kamala Harris to a cognitive test while accusing her of failing her bar exam to become a lawyer.
“I would do it with her. I’ll say, you know what? She failed her law exam. She didn’t pass a law exam, so maybe she wouldn’t pass the cognitive test,” Trump said. While Harris reportedly failed her first attempt at the bar exam, she went on to pass the exam and later became elected as San Francisco’s district attorney and then as California’s attorney general.
Trump says he isn’t familiar with killing of Sonya Massey
A full of journalists at the convention of the National Association of Black Journalists in Chicago stood largely stone cold Wednesday as former President Donald Trump addressed them.
Some remarks drew interlaced boos, cheers and gasps as the conversation unfolded. Trump garnered rounds of laughs as he lambasted Rachel Scott and ABC News for their coverage of him and for the journalist’s questions about his record and rhetoric on race. When Trump said he “wasn’t familiar” with the killing of Sonya Massey, many conventiongoers groaned. A white sheriff’s deputy shot and killed Massey inside her Illinois home this month after the Black woman called 911. A now-fired deputy has been charged with murder. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were among those to publicly mourn Massey.
Trump earlier in his remarks questioned the race of Vice President Kamala Harris, who is Black and Indian American. Before he became a presidential candidate, Trump led efforts challenging the candidacy of former President Barack Obama by falsely asserting he was ineligible to run because he was born outside of the U.S. Birtherism, as it became known, was just the start of Trump’s history questioning the credentials and qualifications of Black politicians.
Trump questions Harris’ race in appearance before Black journalists
Donald Trump falsely questioned Kamala Harris’ race during an appearance Wednesday with the National Association of Black Journalists in Chicago that quickly turned hostile. The Republican former president claimed that Harris, the first Black woman and Asian American to serve as vice president, had in the past promoted only her Indian heritage. “I didn’t know she was Black until a number of years ago when she happened to turn Black, and now she wants to be known as Black. So I don’t know, is she Indian or is she Black?” Trump said.
Trump’s appearance immediately became heated as he sparred with interviewer Rachel Scott of ABC News, accusing her of giving him a “very rude introduction” with a tough first question about his past criticism of Black people and Black journalists. “I think it’s disgraceful that I came here in good spirit. I love the Black population of this country; I’ve done so much for Black population of this country,” Trump said. As an undergraduate, Harris attended Howard University, one of the nation’s most prominent historically Black institutions, where she also pledged the historically Black sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha. As a U.S. senator, Harris was a member of the Congressional Black Caucus.
Some protesters outside the venue played horns and musical instruments under the name Sousaphones Against Hate. “We played a whole bunch of protests going back to 2016 all the way through,” said trombone player Dylan Rehm, 44. “So when we found out that he was going to be here today, we decided to do a version of an ode to Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Not Like Us,’ but we said ‘Trump’s not like us.’”
Second gentleman cites a choice between freedom and ‘hellscape’
Second gentleman Doug Emhoff rallied New Hampshire Democrats on Wednesday, highlighting his wife’s commitment to restoring abortion rights and more. “Once we get the presidency, get numbers in the Senate and the House, we can actually do something about this crisis,” he said. “You can see a world in which if Kamala Harris wins and we get the House and the Senate, we can make things happen in this country, not only on reproductive rights, but freedoms in general.” Emhoff, who described as “surreal” the days since President Joe Biden ended his campaign and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, spoke to about 500 people in a union hall in Concord. As it has elsewhere, abortion has become a key campaign issue for Democrats in New Hampshire, where the procedure is legal up to 24 weeks of pregnancy but the Republican-led Legislature has rejected attempts to enshrine it as a right under the state constitution. “We really have a stark choice between a life of freedom — fundamental rights, progress, moving forward, a place for all of us — and like I said, a hellscape,” Emhoff said.
Activists protest Trump’s appearance in Chicago
Dozens of activists are protesting former President Donald Trump’s appearance in Chicago and chanting outside the downtown hotel where he will address the National Association of Black Journalists. Their chants Wednesday included, “Donald Trump ain’t welcome here!” Several activists carried Palestinian flags and signs calling for “Peace, Justice, and Equity for All.” Police presence was heavy outside the hotel, where a brass band also played at times. A few cars driving by the hotel along the busy Michigan Avenue corridor honked their horns. A few people in Trump T-shirts, and at least one counterprotester who spoke against abortion, also stood outside the hotel.
Campaigns spar over appearances before Black journalists
Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign said ahead of Donald Trump’s appearance Wednesday at a meeting of the National Association of Black Journalists that he would lie about his record. “Not only does Donald Trump have a history of demeaning NABJ members and honorees who remain pillars of the Black press, he also has a history of attacking the media and working against the vital role the press play in our democracy,” Jasmine Harris, the campaign’s director of Black media, said in a statement.
Harris, who is not related to the vice president, also said, “Black voters see Donald Trump’s lies and empty pandering for what they are — and they will hold him accountable at the polls this November.” Kamala Harris is not scheduled to appear at the convention, but the NABJ said in a statement on the social platform X that it was in discussions with her campaign to have her appear virtually or in person for a conversation in September. Trump posted on his social media network that he was told he could not do the event virtually. “She declined, and I am getting ready to land in Chicago in order to be there,” Trump wrote. “Now I am told that she is doing the Event on ZOOM. WHAT’S GOING ON HERE?”
Trump faces resistance in Chicago
Chicago activists said that former President Donald Trump is “not welcome” in the nation’s third-largest city and that they’ll protest outside the hotel where he is expected to address the National Association of Black Journalists. Activist groups, including the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, said they aren’t sure how many will attend their Wednesday protest. The demonstration is expected to start shortly before noon, when Trump will be interviewed by a panel of reporters.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is also attending the same convention hours after Trump. Johnson said in a post on the social media platform X that his administration’s values and practices “are in complete opposition to former President Donald Trump’s agenda.” The first-term Democratic mayor says he wants to assure the public that city agencies and departments are “fully prepared to uphold safety during his scheduled visit.” During his 2016 campaign, Trump canceled a rally in Chicago over safety concerns after protesters packed the arena where he was scheduled to speak.
