South Carolina GOP Chair Drew McKissick attempted to deflect and downplay Donald Trump’s Friday remarks at the Black Conservative Federation’s Annual BCF Honors Gala in South Carolina.
At MSNBC’s “The Weekend” on Saturday, February 24, the co-host replayed the clip, capturing Trump’s comment about seeing only Black people due to the bright lights, but McKissick dismissed it as Trump’s usual speaking style.
“Look, if at this point, everyone doesn’t know the way Donald Trump speaks and has spoken since he came on scene 2015 then they haven’t been in this country very long,” he said, evading addressing the content of the former President’s remarks.
The response itself was after trying to evade addressing the remarks, even claiming to have not attended the event, and only responded after the host replayed the video for him.
“Well, I wasn’t there, and there wasn’t able to hear all the audio in what you’re talking about here just a minute ago,” he had said.
In the face of scrutiny, McKissick characterized Trump as a “billionaire construction worker,” seemingly normalizing the former president’s controversial language.
“Look, if at this point, everyone doesn’t know the way Donald Trump speaks and has spoken since he came on scene 2015 then they haven’t been in this country very long,” he noted.
Despite the attempts to brush off the comments, it was evident that the controversy had reached MSNBC, with co-host Symone D. Sanders-Townsend pushing for a more substantial reaction.
The discord continued when analyst Garrett Haake joined the conversation, asserting that Trump’s remarks might pose a significant problem for the former president.
Haake suggested that Trump’s attempt to connect with Black voters might have backfired, as evidenced by the tepid applause and lackluster response to some of his statements during the gala.
Co-host Michael Steele probed deeper, questioning the authenticity of the audience’s reaction in the room.
Haake acknowledged the self-selected nature of the crowd, emphasizing that they were primarily Trump supporters.
However, he warned that when these clips reached a broader African-American audience, Trump could face a real problem in his efforts to make inroads.
The remark came at a time when Trump’s remarks are landing him in so much trouble, coming shortly after he stated that if elected president, be will let Russia harass some “delinquent” NATO members.
