Real estate mogul Donald Trump’s presidential campaign said Sunday that it wasn’t aware of an individual who reportedly yelled “white power” at a rally for the candidate.
Self-styled “white nationalists” from all over the far-right spectrum have been drawn to Trump’s hardline immigration stance this election cycle. CNN’s Jim Acosta asked Trump’s campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, about reports that a man yelled “white power” multiple times Friday at the rally in Mobile, Alabama:
“I don’t know about the individual you’re talking about in Alabama,” Lewandowski said on “State of the Union.” “I know there were 30-plus thousand people in that stadium. They were very receptive to the message of ‘making America great again’ because they want to be proud to be Americans again.”
Lewandowski’s answer echoed his boss’ initial response to a hate crime that occurred last week in Boston and was apparently inspired by his anti-immigrant rhetoric. Trump said that he wasn’t aware of the attack and immediately pivoted to praising his supporters’ “passion,” before using stronger language to condemn the beating two days later.
Acosta also asked Lewandowski about the attack, in which two brothers were charged with urinating on and beating a homeless men whom one of the brothers allegedly told police they targeted for being Hispanic.
“We would never condone violence. If that’s what happened in Boston, by no means would that be acceptable in any nature,” Lewandowski said. “However, we should not be ashamed to be Americans. We should be proud of our country, proud of our heritage, and continue to be the greatest country in the world.”
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