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In case you were wondering when black leaders somewhere in the country would get around to blaming President Donald Trump for the killing of 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery, it has happened.
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, in what seems like a blatant attempt to stir up racial animosity, described Arbery’s February shooting death in Georgia as a “lynching,” adding that the president’s rhetoric gives people “permission to do it in an overt way.”
Her inflammatory comments came during an appearance on — where else? — CNN, just a few days after a white father and son were charged with shooting Arbery as he ran through a Georgia neighborhood.
“It’s 2020 and this was a lynching of an African-American man,” Bottoms said. “My heart goes out to the family.
“With the rhetoric we hear coming out of the White House, many who are prone to being racist are given permission to do it in an overt way we wouldn’t see in 2020,” she added.
And it would seem that some African-American Republicans, such as Tim Scott, R-SC, agree that this was a racially-motivated killing. As discussed during the Fox News segment below, Scott took to Twitter to express his outrage over the shooting, agreeing with the narrative that Arbery “was hunted down from a pickup truck and murdered in cold blood.”
WATCH:
THREAD: Every.single.time. The excuses pour in – “he looked suspicious”… “we thought he was committing a crime”…The fact remains, #AhmaudArbery was hunted down from a pickup truck and murdered in cold blood. My heart breaks for his family, and justice must be served.
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) May 7, 2020
He then called on Congress to pass symbolic “anti-lynching legislation.”
#IRunWithAhmaud, just as every person of color should be able to go for a jog or out to the store without fear. Congress can do our part – starting with finally fully passing anti-lynching legislation. However, as a nation, we have to admit some hard truths.
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) May 7, 2020
He rounded out his tweet-thread by invoking the imagery of Emmett Till, an African-American male who was killed at the age of 14 for allegedly flirting with a white female.
#AhmaudArbery is far from the first person of color to meet this fate. But his life, or James Byrd’s, or Emmett Till’s, can’t be forgotten. The only way we can stop this is together, as one American family. It’s too late for Ahmaud; let’s ensure his memory powers a better future.
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) May 7, 2020
President Trump has never demonstrated overt or even subtle racism, but rather some of his comments have been taken way out of context by the media and by Democrats to accuse of him being racist.
In fact, Trump was asked about the killing Friday during an appearance on Fox News’ “Fox & Friends” morning show, where he described the event as “a heartbreaking thing.”
“I looked at a picture of that young man. He was in a tuxedo … I will say that that looks like a really good young guy,” the president added.
Of course, this was before new video footage of a young black male entering a house under construction who resembles Arbery was released as well — not that he did anything to deserve what happened to him. But the new footage does add another dimension to the incident that investigators say they are looking into.
The two suspects, Gregory and Travis McMichael, told police they believed that Arbery was the same person recorded by a security camera committing a break-in earlier. When they saw him running in February, the grabbed firearms and pursued him.
Gregory McMichael is a retired police officer.
***WARNING: Graphic***
[VIOLENCE WARNING]
Are these two men “good people” too, @realDonaldTrump? I call on you and @GovKemp to condemn the actions of these two white men as terrorism, hatred, inhumanity, insanity, immorality and evil. Unconscionable. #AhmaudArbery pic.twitter.com/XoYmrlr6sR
— Be A King (@BerniceKing) May 5, 2020
When asked about the racial elements to the case, Trump said “justice getting done is the thing that solves that problem.”
Of course, it does. But what if the evidence doesn’t lead prosecutors to charge the two white men or what if the evidence leads to a charge but not a conviction? Will that be the fault of Trump’s “rhetoric” too?
And wasn’t the “lynching” comment over the top? Some black leaders and notable figures think so, including conservative commentator Candace Owens.
I see I’m trending so let me clarify:
I WILL NOT BE A SLAVE TO THE DEMOCRAT RACE NARRATIVE.
NOT TODAY. NOT TOMORROW. NOT EVER.
I WILL NOT PRETEND TO LIVE IN A SOCIETY WHERE BLACKS ARE HUNTED, TO SATISFY THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA MASTERS.
I DO NOT SEEK APPROVAL, I SEEK FREEDOM.
— Candace Owens (@RealCandaceO) May 10, 2020
Two things can be true at once:
-Ahmaud Arbery did not deserve to die.
-Ahmaud Arbery was not a jogger gunned down for the crime of being black.
It’s that simple. But the media cannot resist a race narrative in a election cycle. And people struggle to think for themselves.
— Candace Owens (@RealCandaceO) May 9, 2020
Daily mail has published the full 4 minute video of Ahmaud Avery WALKING* up the street, and then ENTERING a private property which was under construction.
As I said: He didn’t deserve to die but the “just a jogger” narrative was a race-baiting LIE.https://t.co/rgDnvBwHb0
— Candace Owens (@RealCandaceO) May 10, 2020
2020 definitions:
Black man kills a white person= murder
Black man kills a black person= murder
White person kills a black man= racist lynching indicative of the third coming of the Ku Klux Klansmen, worthy of back to back media coverage, protests and A-list celebrity voices.
— Candace Owens (@RealCandaceO) May 9, 2020
Ahmaud Arbery was caught on camera breaking into an unfinished property that was owned by Larry English.
His mother has confirmed it is him in the video.
Please stop with the “just a jogger” bullshit narrative.
Avid joggers don’t wear khaki shorts & stop to break into homes.— Candace Owens (@RealCandaceO) May 9, 2020
As for the McMichaels, there has been no evidence presented thus far that their actions were racially motivated. That said, the felony murder charges filed against them “mean that a victim was killed during the commission of an underlying felony, in this case aggravated assault,” which occurred during the act and resultant struggle for the firearm that likely killed Arbery.
The charge doesn’t require an intent to kill. Murder convictions in Georgia carry with them a minimum sentence of life in prison, with or without parole.
During her interview, Bottoms remained fixated on Trump.
“I have four kids, three of whom are African-American boys,” she said. “They are angry and afraid and it speaks to the need to have leadership at the top who respects all communities in words and deeds as well.”
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Jon is a staff writer for BizPac Review with 30 years' worth of reporting experience, as well as an author and U.S. Army veteran. He has a BA in political science from Ashford University and an MA in national security studies/intelligence analysis from American Military University.
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