We're just going to focus on selected voices on the right calling out the inability of neo- fascist nitwit Donald "Rump" Trump to mouth the words "white supremacist" or "Nazi" in his weak comments on the tragedy in Charlottesville yesterday. (For the time being, we'll dispense with pointing out "you built this.")
Michael Gerson
Trump’s reaction to events in Charlottesville was alternately trite (“come together as one”), infantile (“very, very sad”) and meaningless (“we want to study it”). “There are so many great things happening in our country,” he said, on a day when racial violence took a life. [snip]
What do we do with a president who is incapable or unwilling to perform his basic duties? What do we do when he is incapable of outrage at outrageous things? What do we do with a president who provides barely veiled cover for the darkest instincts of the human heart? These questions lead to the dead end of political realism — a hopeless recognition of limited options. But the questions intensify.Jennifer Rubin
Opinion | Enough of the Confederate statues, the alt-right heroes and Trump's moral idiocy https://t.co/ZiFJ8L3B1R— Jennifer Rubin (@JRubinBlogger) August 13, 2017
It’s time to get rid of the statues and get rid of the alt-right heroes in the White House. https://t.co/ZiFJ8L3B1R— Jennifer Rubin (@JRubinBlogger) August 13, 2017
Rubin means Trump, of course, and Bannon and Miller and this POS.
Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO):
Mr. President - we must call evil by its name. These were white supremacists and this was domestic terrorism. https://t.co/PaPNiPPAoW— Cory Gardner (@SenCoryGardner) August 12, 2017
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), hoping against hope:
Very important for the nation to hear @potus describe events in #Charlottesville for what they are, a terror attack by #whitesupremacists— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) August 12, 2017
Nothing patriotic about #Nazis,the #KKK or #WhiteSupremacists It's the direct opposite of what #America seeks to be. #Charlotesville— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) August 12, 2017
Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT):
We should call evil by its name. My brother didn't give his life fighting Hitler for Nazi ideas to go unchallenged here at home. -OGH— Senator Hatch Office (@senorrinhatch) August 12, 2017
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA):
What " WhiteNatjonalist" are doing in Charlottesville is homegrown terrorism that can't be tolerated anymore that what Any extremist does— ChuckGrassley (@ChuckGrassley) August 12, 2017
Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI):
Our hearts are with today's victims. White supremacy is a scourge. This hate and its terrorism must be confronted and defeated.— Paul Ryan (@SpeakerRyan) August 12, 2017
Sen. John McCain (R-AZ):
“White supremacists and neo-Nazis are, by definition, opposed to American patriotism and the ideals that define us as a people and make our nation special.
“As we mourn the tragedy that has occurred in Charlottesville, American patriots of all colors and creeds must come together to defy those who raise the flag of hatred and bigotry.”
None should be surprised at the display of cowardice on the part of Rump, a lump bereft of conscience, morality, and compassion. It further illuminates the vacuum we have in the most important office in the land, if not the world.
This is a defining moment for many on the right to choose whether they're "Republicans" or "republicans" first. Let's see how many are up to the challenge of calling out their party's leader and the pond scum in his service that support these vile beliefs.
UPDATE: Much more reaction - left and right - here.
