from Daniel Johnson
21 August 2024
Donalds called the questioning about Trump’s campaign appearance “insulting.”
Florida state Rep. Byron Donalds dismissed criticism of Donald Trump’s visit to Howell, Michigan, the site of white supremacist violence in July, pointing out that President Joe Biden has visited the city in the past.
Accordingly CBS NewsDonalds described the questioning about Trump’s campaign appearance as “insulting.”
“This whole line of questioning is really offensive. There are people in Howell, Michigan, just like there are people all over the country,” Donalds said.
Accordingly The HillHarris’ campaign reacted less favorably to Trump’s campaign stop. Alyssa Bradley, the Harris campaign’s communications director in Michigan, called the stop a megaphone, not a dog whistle.
“Trump chose to protest in a city historically known as ‘the Ku Klux Klan capital of Michigan’; this (Tuesday) event on ‘crime and safety’ is not a dog whistle from Trump – it’s a megaphone. His visit underscores the core choice in this election – between a prosecutor and a criminal, between someone who has spent her life making communities safer and someone who promotes violence, between someone who will build a future where all Michiganders can move forward and someone who wants to take us back to the days of the Ku Klux Klan,” Bradley said.
Last month, white supremacists marched through downtown Howell, waving flags with racist slogans and chanting their support for Trump. Neither Donald nor Trump’s campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt addressed the incident. Leavitt issued an official statement questioning the mainstream media’s double standards toward Trump.
“Did the media write the same story when Joe Biden visited Howell in 2021 or when Kamala Harris visited cities that have historically hosted racist protests and demonstrations? No, of course not, because the mainstream serves as a divisive, anti-Trump mouthpiece for the Democratic Party. President Trump will travel to Howell to deliver a strong message of law and order and to make clear that crime, violence and hatred of any kind will have no place in our country when he is back in the White House,” Leavitt said.
Accordingly MLiveIn July, another group of white supremacists chanted “Heil Hitler” and “We love Trump” while carrying neo-Nazi and KKK flags and handing out white supremacist literature. Howell Mayor Bob Ellis acknowledged the city’s history with Michigan KKK Grand Dragon Robert E. Miles, but said he wasn’t sure that history was the reason the white supremacists felt comfortable marching through town.
According to the Michigan advanceA joint statement from the City of Howell, the Livingston Diversity Council and the Howell Chamber of Commerce condemned the group’s racist ideology. Trump has so far refused to do so.
“While we recognize their right to free speech, these protesters do not reflect the values of the Howell community. The incident was ended within a half hour of it beginning. The City of Howell, Livingston Diversity Council and Howell Area Chamber of Commerce stand united in condemning the racist ideology of this group. We take great pride in being a welcoming and inclusive community and this is likely why we were targeted by this outside group. We also want to thank all of our residents who responded quickly to this event and made it clear that we do not share their views,” the statement said.
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