“Regardless of whether or not Trump intended to inflame already intense community relations, Romney believes that the President should apologize.”
Former Presidential candidate Mitt Romney is urging Donald Trump to apologize for his remarks regarding Charlottesville, and has warned the President that if he does not, he could risk unraveling America’s national fabric. Romney has largely stayed out of the Press since Trump was elected, but has weighed in a few times to criticize him.
His most recent weigh in came via a lengthy Facebook post. The critique wasn’t quite a moral one, as Romney noted:
“I will dispense for now from discussion of the moral character of the president’s Charlottesville statements. Whether he intended to or not, what he communicated caused racists to rejoice, minorities to weep, and the vast heart of America to mourn.”
Regardless of whether or not Trump intended to inflame already intense community relations, Romney believes that the President should apologize. Numerous other Republicans have also called on President Trump to walk back his comments. Of course, many Democrats and other non-Republicans have likewise been urging the President to issues an apology. Still, Romney is now emerging as an immensely vocal critic, arguing:
“The potential consequences are severe in the extreme. Accordingly, the president must take remedial action in the extreme. He should address the American people, acknowledge that he was wrong, apologize. State forcefully and unequivocally that racists are 100% to blame for the murder and violence in Charlottesville.“
So what has people so upset? First, President Trump argued that there were “fine people” of both sides of the Charlottesville protests. However, critics claim that one side consisted purely of bigots and racists, many of whom were ready to commit violence. Is it possible to be a “fine person” and a bigot? Many Americans, and indeed many Republican leaders, think not.
Further, while many cities and states are looking to take down Confederate statues, Trump has argued that doing so will remove important parts of our history. Trump has also called the statues and monuments “beautiful” and that it’d be “sad” and “foolish” to remove them.
Cities Across the Nation Accelerate Removal of Confederate Statues
Baltimore, Maryland removed numerous Confederate statues in the days following the protests in Charlottesville. The operation was carried out late at night in a speedy process to avoid disruptions. Interestingly, Maryland remained a part of the Union, but was a slave-holding state right up until the closing days of the Civil War.
Already, Gainesville (FL), Orlando (FL), New Orleans (LA), Brooklyn (NY), Austin (TX) and Durham (NC) have removed Confederate statues. Numerous other cities are either planning to or have proposed removing Confederate monuments.
Proponents of the statues argue that they are important reminders of our history. By removing these statues, we could possibly be sweeping important, albeit dark, aspects of our history under the rug. Critics argue that the statues glorify traitors who lost a war. Many have noted that most of America’s other defeated enemies are honored with statues. As for learning, that’s what history books are for…
