White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany on Monday managed to jab Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden as she responded to Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers’ (D) plea for President Trump to cancel his upcoming trip to Kenosha amid unrest over the shooting of Jacob Blake by police.
On Sunday, Evers urged Trump in a letter to “reconsider” his upcoming trip to Kenosha on Tuesday. Evers wrote that he is “concerned your presence will only hinder our healing,” which echoes Democrats’ concerns that Trump’s visit to Kenosha amid ongoing unrest would incite more violence after peaceful protests turned violent when police officers clashed with demonstrators.
When asked about Biden opting to visit Pittsburgh later Monday instead of Kenosha during an interview on “Fox and Friends” on Monday morning, McEnany accused Democrats of “ignoring” Wisconsin like they did in 2016, appearing to refer to Trump’s narrow win in the state that year.
“One would think that be the case — here we go again Democrats ignoring the state of Wisconsin as they did in 2016,” McEnany said, before mentioning that the President has “showed up” recently in response to devastation from Hurricane Laura in Texas and Louisiana.
McEnany argued that Trump’s visit to Kenosha on Tuesday shows that he is “demonstrating his respect for the American people by actually going to places where Americans are hurting.”
“He’ll always show up that’s what this president has done for four years and he’ll continue to do,” McEnany said.
McEnany was then asked about her thoughts on Evers’ letter to Trump, and she replied by boasting how Trump “loves the people of Wisconsin.”
McEnany went on to bolster Trump’s claim that he is the President of “law and order” by attributing the quelling of protests in Minneapolis and Kenosha to National Guard deployment.
“We did see a noticeable difference when they came in,” McEnany said. “So this President is always willing to help and he’s going to show up and he’ll be there tomorrow.”
McEnany’s remarks come as Trump repeatedly rails against Portland mayor Ted Wheeler, who refused the President’s offer to help quell unrest amid ongoing protests against police brutality in the city by deploying federal law enforcement. Republicans have also echoed the President’s sentiment by shifting blame to local officials in Democrat-led cities.
Watch McEnany’s remarks below:
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany slams Biden for going to Pittsburgh instead of Kenosha pic.twitter.com/00vqKOv57L
— Talking Points Memo (@TPM) August 31, 2020
Dems have the advantage on this issue post Portland. Nobody wants Trump there, and he’s all in on inciting right wing violence against protesters. That’s not a winning issue. You’re seeing it in the polling. Trump has no bounce, is down 7 among military voters, down 15 in FL-13 (Pinellas county), has given ground among white voters in deep red Pasco County, FL, among other data points.
I cannot be the only person to notice that wherever and whenever Trump shows up Americans are hurting.
Thanks for starting off my day on a high note.
Going to be a very long couple of months until the election…
Hatch Act Violation #2,483. And it’s only Monday. Not to be outdone I see Hogan Gridley is also on the Hatch Act bandwagon this morning.