Democratic Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley said Sunday that she had been hoping President Donald Trump would not tweet about the passing of civil rights icon John Lewis.
Pressley joined CNN’s Jake Tapper to discuss the legacy of the Democratic Georgia congressman — who died late Friday after a battle with stage four pancreatic cancer — and went on to claim that the president’s policies “dishonored the blood that he shed on that bridge.” (RELATED: ‘Case Study In Media Bias’: Kayleigh McEnany Blasts Washington Post For Taking Her Out Of Context)
WATCH:
Tapper began the segment with a comment about President Trump’s push to roll back the Obama-era 2015 fair housing regulation that was designed to supplement the Fair Housing Act of 1968, asking Pressley what she made of the situation.
“What’s your reaction to that?” Tapper asked.
“More of the same from Donald Trump and this administration who sowed the seeds of division. And I can’t even accuse that — characterize that as a dog whistle. It’s so far beyond that,” Pressley replied, adding, “That’s why, you know, I was hoping the president would not even tweet yesterday about John Lewis.”
“At this point we don’t need anybody’s sympathies or tweets. What we need is action,” Pressley continued. “If you really want to honor the life of John Lewis, you don’t do things like gut the fair housing laws. You don’t sow the seeds of division. You don’t delay bringing the Voting Rights Advancement Act named after John Lewis to the floor. And that should be brought to the floor immediately. So they’re a complete contradiction of everything that John Lewis fought for. They dishonored the blood that he shed on that bridge.”
Tapper pressed again, asking whether Pressley felt that the president’s comments were racist, noting that he made the remarks at the White House and not at a campaign rally.
“John Lewis said Donald Trump is racist,” Pressley concluded. “I mean, again, at this point, this is so much bigger than his hateful rhetoric. I’m focused and don’t allow myself to get distracted by his hateful policies. The cruelty is the point when it comes to their culture, the corruption is the point.”