TEHRAN, Jul 28 -US President Donald Trump has launched a “racist” attack on Representative Elijah Cummings, yet another lawmaker of color, merely days after telling four congresswomen of minority backgrounds to go back to places where they came from.
TEHRAN, Young Journalists Club (YJC) -The president went on a twitter tirade on Saturday, accusing Cummings, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, of doing such a “poor job” that his district in Baltimore, Maryland has become a "disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess."
Trump went on to claim that conditions in Cummings' district, which is 52 percent African American, is "far worse and more dangerous" than those at the US-Mexico border.
"If he spent more time in Baltimore, maybe he could help clean up this very dangerous & filthy place," Trump said, arguing that the lawmaker’s district “is considered the Worst in the USA" and "no human being would want to live there."
Cummings is a frequent critic of Trump and has launched several investigations into the Trump administration regarding the Republican president’s finances as well as some White House-related issues, including security clearances.
The latest attack came after Cummings, 68, criticized acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan over border conditions during a committee hearing on July 18.
He also erupted at Trump earlier this month after the president used similar racist language to attack four progressive Democratic congresswomen of color to "go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came."
The controversial remarks were addressed at Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Rashida Tlaib Michigan and Ayanna Pressley from Massachusetts. Besides Omar, who is from a immigrant Somali family, the three other lawmakers were born in the US.
Continuing his attacks into Sunday, Trump also blasted the Oversight investigation without providing any basis for his claims. Interestingly, the tweets came shortly after Fox News aired a program in which a Republican strategist described Cummings' district as worse than those at the southern border. Trump has been caught using Fox News as the source for many of his claims in the past.
Cummings hit back at Trump, defending his decision as the head of the House Oversight Committee and as a lawmaker.
"Mr. President, I go home to my district daily," Cummings wrote on Twitter Saturday in response. "Each morning, I wake up, and I go and fight for my neighbors. It is my constitutional duty to conduct oversight of the Executive Branch. But, it is my moral duty to fight for my constituents."
Sanders, Pelosi react
Trump’s attack on Cummings drew harsh responses from other lawmakers, with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Virginia Senator Bernie Sanders taking the center stage.
Pelosi led Democratic legislators in defending Cummings, describing the tweets as "racist attacks."
She described Cummings as “a champion in the Congress and the country for civil rights and economic justice, a beloved leader in Baltimore, and deeply valued colleague.”
“We all reject racist attacks against him and support his steadfast leadership,” Pelosi wrote.
Sanders said he was shocked that Trump would use such words to describe American cities.
"It's unbelievable that we have a President of the United States who attacks American cities, who attacks Americans," the Vermont senator told CNN.
"Our job is to bring people together, to improve life for all people, not to be, have a racist President who attacks people because they are African Americans. That is a disgrace and that is why we're going to defeat this President," said Sanders, one of the few Democratic presidential hopefuls who stands a chance to face Trump during the 2020 race for the White House.
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