Donald Trump's race problem

The recent hurricanes and tornadoes in Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico have resulted in great personal and economic damage to the United States, but they have also added to the perception that President Donald Trump is a racist. While Texas and Florida faced equally damaging loss of life and property as did Puerto Rico, it was only Puerto Ricans that were told that they were expecting too much from the federal government and that they needed to do more on their own, an oft repeated phrase from whites towards blacks in their struggle for civil rights during the 1960s.

Unwittingly, or not, the president’s remarks tend to underscore not simply that his sentiments, were not just symptomatic of a white man in his 70’s,  but that he seemed to dismiss the validity of their concerns and anxiety, and, in which, no shape or form, could they do by themselves.

It also gave the president the unenviable position that he was painting himself into a corner. This also had some critics wondering if he even knew that Puerto Rico is a U.S. Possession, and not a foreign country; notwithstanding that they are people of color.

Not helping were the optics that reflected badly on Trump as he threw paper towels to Puerto Ricans in a relief center, as if the master of the plantation had come to throw out - the emphasis on throwing out -- supplies. Even in the minds of the less literally minded American, it seemed that the mythic Southern plantation master would have at least handed out provisions to the slaves.

Lending further damage was his defense: “They had these beautiful, soft towels. Very good towels,” Trump told Mike Huckabee during an interview Saturday with Christian network Trinity Broadcasting.

“And I came in and there was a crowd of a lot of people. And they were screaming and they were loving everything. I was having fun, they were having fun,” he added. “They said, 'Throw 'em to me! Throw 'em to me Mr. President!”

If this were not bad enough, or as the old adage advised, “leave well enough alone,” he further said, “And so, I'm doing some of this,” Trump added, making a throwing motion, “So, the next day they said, 'Oh, it was so disrespectful to the people.' It was just a made-up thing. And also when I walked in the cheering was incredible.”

The only thing that he did not say, or do, was to use the phrase, “You people,” which raises both the ire, and anger, of people of color.

The race optics became even worse with his condemnation of the NFL players protesting the ill-treatment of black men, by some of the nation’s police and by mostly black players, joined with his verbal recommendation to “get that son of a bitch off the field,” if he did not stand for the national anthem.

Circling back to Charlottesville, we get the lion’s share of remarks when he said that there was blame on both sides, as hundreds of white supremacists marched towards a group or bedraggled, mostly University of Virginia undergraduates, protesters, angry about the invasion of their town to support an untenable position.

As National Public Radio reported, “When he was chastised, by member of his staff, and fellow Republicans he backtracked, only later when scheduled to discuss infrastructure, to reverse direction, and return to his original remarks . . . "I think especially in light of the advent of antifa, if you look at what's going on there, you know, you have some pretty bad dudes on the other side also. And essentially that's what I said."

"Now because of what's happened since then, with antifa, [anti-fascist groups] you look at, you know, really what's happened since Charlottesville — a lot of people are saying — in fact, a lot of people have actually written, 'Gee, Trump might have a point,' " the president said. "I said, 'You got some very bad people on the other side also,' which is true."

In response to Trump's new remarks, Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C) office put out a statement that said in part: "Rome wasn't built in a day and to expect the President's rhetoric to change based on one 30 minute conversation is unrealistic. Antifa is bad and should be condemned, yes, but white supremacists have been killing and tormenting black Americans for centuries. There is no realistic comparison. Period."

The support, near hero worshipping, that he has gained from white supremacists adds further to the racist label. Even more disturbing were the damaging pictures of the Charlottesville marchers wearing his trademark informal uniform of khaki pants, white golf shirts and red caps emblazoned with the tagline, of his own campaign, “Make America Great Again.”

Matters came to a head when the president fumbled this past week to remember the name of Sgt. La David Johnson, who was killed in a mission in Niger, in a condolence call with his widow, Myeshia Johnson, where he amazingly said, “he knew what he was getting into,” and to make it worse, referred to Johnson, not as her husband, but “your guy,” implying that black couples don’t marry, but simply cohabitate.

Mrs. Johnson

As if this was not enough, when Mrs. Johnson’s Congresswoman, Frederica Wilson, called him out, on these remarks, he sent retired Marine General, and now Chief of Staff, John Kelly, out to shield him from the media attacks. Kelly not only called her liar, but said that Wilson got $20 million dollars for a new FBI building in South Florida; but that event happened when she was not in Congress.

Then he uttered the, by now, infamous “empty barrel” remark about the congresswoman, that demeaned her as a black woman, in power.

There seems to be a long list of those that Trump seems to have a problem with, such as journalist April Ryan, Rep. Maxine Waters, former Ambassador Susan Rice, and television anchor Jemele Harris.

While some like Washington Post reporter Ashley Parker, skirt the issue of race,and focuses on the importance of getting names right, the damage is done, with black and brown people of the United States.

As Salon.com noted, this is not merely one of his more brutish swipes, but an assault, on black women, aided and abetted by Kelly, that coupled with his earlier statements, adds to Trump being labelled a racist.

The only way that the president can go from here, is up, and that seems unlikely as he has not listened to the advice of many, on a variety of subjects; including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, his own team of advisers, or even ranking members of his own party.