Donald Trump calls Black Lives Matter sign a ‘hate symbol’

President Trump is regretting listening to son-in-law Jared Kushner’s advice on passing criminal justice reform, back-pedaling on his most bipartisan accomplishment, which he’s used to attract black voters and combat claims of racism. 

Axios reported Trump’s turnaround Wednesday, hours after Trump further sided with police in the cops-versus-Black Lives Matter debate, referring to a planned ‘Black Lives Matter’ street mural in New York City as a ‘symbol of hate.’ 

The president’s current thinking, one source told Axios, is ‘no more of Jared’s woke s***.’ 

President Trump is regretting listening to son-in-law Jared Kushner in supporting criminal justice reform, which he’s used to talk up his record on helping black America. Axios reported Wednesday that Trump believes the move hurt him politically

Jared Kushner, captured leaving his D.C. home for work at the White House Tuesday, pushed for passage of the First Step Act and thought the president should promote it heavily as he campaigns for re-election

Jared Kushner, captured leaving his D.C. home for work at the White House Tuesday, pushed for passage of the First Step Act and thought the president should promote it heavily as he campaigns for re-election 

In December 2018, Trump signed the First Step Act, with the president pushing Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, to get the bipartisan bill over the line. 

The legislation had brought together top Republican Sens. Chuck Grassley and Mike Lee and prominent Democratic Sens. Cory Booker and Dick Durbin. 

In the House, Rep. Doug Collins, a staunch Trump backer during impeachment, worked alongside Rep. John Lewis, a Georgia Democrat and civil rights activist, and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat and rising Congressional star, to get it done. 

Kushner, whose father had been imprisoned, pushed hard for the bill. 

And it had the support of celebrities and media personalities including Kim Kardashian and CNN’s Van Jones. 

But Trump, according to Axios, feels like the Kumbaya moment, has hurt him politically. 

Politico reported a similar story back in September 2019.  

‘It was clear he thinks it’s a total dud,’ said a source who attended a meeting with Trump, Kushner and campaign ads, as the president’s son-in-law suggested that the president promote the First Step Act heavily as part of his re-election strategy. 

‘He made is abundantly clear he doesn’t think it’s worth talking about,’ the source said of Trump and the law. 

Trump has brought up the First Step Act recently, but has used it to prove his administration has been good for black Americans, especially in the wake of George Floyd’s death and the ‘Black Lives Matter’ demonstrations that followed. 

On June 10, the same day he announced he wasn’t supportive of renaming military bases named for Confederate figures, Trump hosted a roundtable with black supporters. 

There, after one of the attendees pointed to his record, he called criminal justice reform a ‘big thing,’ and chided past administrations for not being able to get it done – and wagged his finger at any Democrats who might try to claim credit. 

‘I keep hearing about, “Oh, criminal justice reform,” and everyone is trying to take the credit,’ Trump said. ‘And this one, I will say, we will take the full credit because they couldn’t have done it without us.’ 

‘So we’ve done a lot for the black community, and we’ve done a lot for all communities,’ he added at the June 10 meeting. 

Trump will mention criminal justice reform, further funding historically black universities and colleges and bringing down the black unemployment rate, when he’s called a racist.  

But since the death of George Floyd and his downward momentum in the presidential polls, Trump’s broader strategy has been leaning hard into the culture war. 

On Tuesday night, he threatened to veto the National Defense Authorization Act for an amendment pitched by Sen. Elizabeth Warren that would rename the country’s outstanding military bases that are still named after Confederate fighters. 

President Trump feels he needs to be unequivocally on the side of law enforcement to win re-election later this year. On Wednesday he said a 'Black Lives Matter' mural would be a 'symbol of hate' and would 'further antagonize New York's Finest'

President Trump feels he needs to be unequivocally on the side of law enforcement to win re-election later this year. On Wednesday he said a ‘Black Lives Matter’ mural would be a ‘symbol of hate’ and would ‘further antagonize New York’s Finest’ 

On Wednesday, Trump slammed New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and Black Lives Matter activists, who he accused of chanting ‘Pigs In A Blanket, Fry ‘Em Like Bacon’ at the police, for the planned Black Lives Matter art piece on Fifth Avenue.

He said the mural would be ‘denigrating this luxury avenue.’  

He also suggested police should interfere in those plans. 

‘Maybe our GREAT Police, who have been neutralized and scorned by a mayor who hates & disrespects them, won’t let this symbol of hate be affixed to New York’s greatest street,’ Trump wrote. ‘Spend this money fighting crime instead!’ 

The mural will be painted outside of Trump Tower.  

The mayor clapped back writing, ‘The fact that you see it as denigrating your street is the definition of racism.’ 

White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany explained the president’s comments at Wednesday’s press briefing  

‘He agrees that all black lives matter including of that of Officer David Dorn, Patrick Underwood, two officers whose lives were tragically taken amid these riots, all black lives do matter, he agrees with that sentiment,’ she began. 

‘But what he doesn’t agree with is an organization that chants, “pigs in a blanket, fry them like bacon,” about our police officers, our valiant heroes who are out on our streets protecting us every day,’ she added. 

ABC News’ Jonathan Karl pointed out that Americans of all races and in 50 states have attended demonstrations in support of Black Lives Matter. 

McEnany said the president’s tweet was specifically about the official Black Lives Matter organization, which she accused of saying things like ‘burn down the system.’  

‘What’s the name of the organization again?’ she asked Karl, to which he said Black Lives Matter. ‘There you go, you answered my question,’ she said, moving on to another reporter’s question.   

Axios reported that Trump feels that it’s best for him politically to be unequivocally supportive of law enforcement. 

In response to the publication’s reporting, McEnany said the president is ‘very proud’ of the work he’s done to benefit ‘all communities.’      

‘The First Step Act made historic strides toward rectifying racial disparities in sentencing while his executive order to secure America’s streets works with our nation’s heroic police officers to ensure we have safe policing and safe communities,’ she said. 

The latter reference was to an executive order Trump signed in the aftermath of Floyd’s death to reform policing, which activists say doesn’t accomplish their aims. 

Trump’s thinking on the First Step Act also likely means that the police reform bills being discussed on Capitol Hill won’t get any White House support.   

Another source told Axios that any leaks from unnamed sources about a Trump-Kushner rift are being purposely hurtful.  

‘Numerous anonymous sources have attempted to provide separation between Jared and the president,’ a senior White House official said. ‘They have failed for the last three and a half years. They are not going to be successful today either.’    

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