Trump Hammers Clinton Over Racial Comments
Shifting the focus of the first presidential debate toward law enforcement, race relations and Second Amendment gun rights, Republican nominee Donald Trump took a moment Monday night to discuss an element of Democrat Hillary Clinton’s past she likely wish could have stayed buried.
“I do want to bring up the fact that you were the one that brought up the word ‘super-predator’ about young black youth,” Trump stated.
“That’s a term that I think … it’s been horribly met — as you know — I think you’ve apologized for it, but I think it was a terrible thing to say,” he continued.
The comment Trump was referring to dates back to 1996, when then first lady Hillary Clinton expressed her perceptions of young black men and their role in burgeoning crime statistics.
“They’re not just gangs of kids anymore,” she began. “They are often the kinds of kids that are called super-predators. No conscience, no empathy.”
Clinton’s remarks were made all the worse when she offered her solution to dealing with these “super-predators.”
“We can talk about why they ended up that way, but first we have to bring them to heel,” she stated emphatically.
As part of her agenda to bring young black men in line, Clinton proposed harsher sentencing laws, which resulted in mass incarcerations, including severe sentencing for children as young as 13.
Although Clinton has apologized for these comments since beginning her political career, the racial overtones and the imagery evoked of bringing young black men “to heel” has stuck with many in the African-American community.
For this reason and others, enthusiasm for Clinton among black voters has been lower than many expected.
Although she still maintains a healthy lead over Trump, his support has continued to grow. A tracking poll earlier this month showed Trump with a 16.5 percent increase in support from black voters. (For more from the author of “Trump Hammers Clinton Over Racial Comments” please click HERE)
Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.
