I watched the Presidential news conference yesterday and was quite surprised when President Trump called on CNN's reporter Jim Acosta, especially knowing the animosity the white house has for him.
When Mr. Acosta started to ask his question about the migrant "caravan", the President interrupted him and started to berate and denigrate Mr. Acosta. He did not let him finish his question and resorted to calling him names, including what a terrible person he was.
When an intern attempted to take the microphone from the reporter, he pulled back and held on to it. The confrontation was very painful to watch. And as the President called on another reporter, Peter Alexander, he continued his tirade against Mr. Acosta. To Mr. Alexander's credit, he stood behind his fellow reporter.
Several other times during the long press conference, the President interrupted almost every question, and even called some questions completely racist, when in fact they were not. He was asked about the two Muslim women who were elected to Congress and went on a long rambling comment about the unemployment rates of minorities and how the minorities love him
This morning I read that Mr. Acosta's press credentials have been revoked because, as Press Secretary Sarah Sanders put it, he "laid hands on an intern for just trying to do her job".
I am disheartened also from reading comments on this situation condoning the blatant lie now coming out of the white house. What press conference did these people watch? Certainly not the one I watched! Mr. Acosta was not in any way, shape or form disrespectful in this question, nor in his failure to relinquish the microphone. As he gestured with his empty hand, the touched the arm of the intern and immediately apologized.
I am ashamed of this administration for again deliberating lying to the public. Do they think we are totally stupid? I guess they must since they keep doing it. I am also disheartened by Ms. Sanders, who was raised in my state, by a Christian minister father. Her actions definitely don't reflect my Christian values.
Is our country so divided that we will never get back to unity? What does the rest of the world think of us? I've seen so many reports from other countries that we are now the laughingstock of the free world. We have alienated our closest allies. By taking the stance of nationalism above all else puts us in a dangerous situation. Have we gotten so far from recent history to see that this parallels what happened in Germany? Many say that it is the democrats who are perpetuating socialism, yet the former administration did not break ties with our allies.
I said from the start of this administration that I feared for our country. That fear is growing and being borne out every day. There is so much anger, on both sides, that I fear we will never be whole again.
Yesterday was a very sad day for our country, and not because of the election results in the mid-terms. It was a blatant display of ego that will not benefit our country.
