CHICAGO — Donald Trump delivered a combative speech during a heated question-and-answer session at a conference of black journalists on Wednesday, at times focusing on Vice President Kamala Harris’ race.
Trump claimed that he did not know that Harris, who is Indian-American and black, was black until a few years ago. He then suggested, offhandedly, that he had only recently decided to “turn black” for political gain.
“I’ve known him indirectly for a long time,” Trump said. “And he was always of Indian heritage and he only promoted Indian heritage. “I didn’t know he was Black until he accidentally became Black a few years ago, and now he wants to be known as Black.”
“I respect both of them,” he added, “but he’s clearly not, because he was Indian all the way, and then all of a sudden he turned around and… he’s Black. … Someone should investigate this too.”
“Is he Indian or black?” – he asked.
Rachel Scott, one of three moderators on ABC News’ National Association of Black Journalists panel, noted that Harris, the de facto Democratic presidential nominee, attended Howard University, a historically Black college. Trump did not respond directly.
After the exchange asked about Scott’s growing Republicans, Harris said, “DEI to work,” a term that refers to workplace policies that promote “diversity, equity and inclusion. It is increasingly used by some discrediting people of color with opposing political views.
Trump ultimately said he wasn’t sure what he thought Harris was a DEI recruit.
Harris’ campaign called Trump’s appearance at the NABJ event an “absolute disaster.”
“He is,” a campaign spokesman said.
Harris was unable to attend the group’s annual convention, but the two sides are working on a time to meet in the future.
When NBC News reached out to the Trump campaign for an almost immediate reaction to Harris’ comments about his race, communications director Steven Cheung responded: “Reaction from the truth?”
“These people must be out of their minds,” he said.
A source familiar with conversations between NABJ leadership and the Trump campaign told NBC News that part of the initial tension stemmed from the idea that NABJ felt blindsided by its partnership with PolitiFact to fact-check real-time exchanges.
Trump’s team learned this after the opening speech ABC journalist The source said the fact-check was leaked.
According to the source, a member of NABJ’s leadership team told the campaign, “I don’t know anything about it,” when confronted by Trump’s team about live fact-checking.
According to the source, Trump’s campaign was confident that NABJ would comply with any request, including the format.
A NABJ spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.
During a White House press briefing that coincided with the NABJ event on Wednesday, NBC News read Trump’s comments to White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and asked her to respond.
“As a person of color — as a Black woman in this position standing before you at this podium, behind this chair — what she just said, what you just read to me, is disgusting. It’s an insult. You know, no one has the right to tell someone who they are or how they know them. This is no one’s right,” he said.
A source close to Harris also said Trump’s comments were “hurtful.”
“This is simply false and easily disproved,” this person said. “She went to Howard for Christ’s sake! He is AKA.”
While a student at Howard, Harris was a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, a historically Black organization.
Trump was also asked to clarify his comments during the presidential debate in June when he said he welcomed immigrants to the United States.Black work.”
“Black work is anyone who has a job,” he said. “That’s it. If anyone – they are taking jobs away from black people. They enter, they enter, they occupy.”
It was a concert he made an effort In early 2024, Trump’s campaign said he would work hard to win over more black voters. His 12% in 2020 was the highest for a Republican presidential candidate in modern times, and the campaign was aiming for about 20% in November. End NBC News survey A poll conducted before President Joe Biden dropped out and Harris replaced him as the presumptive Democratic nominee had Trump up 12% with black voters.
One in the days leading up to the NABJ event a whirlwind of controversy Regarding whether Trump should be invited from within the organization. Trump has in the past called a black prosecutor “animal“,” To Black Democratic Members of Congress “Go back” where they came from and called black women journalists “stupid,” “losers” and “dirty” — comments taken in 2019 do not condemn From NABJ.
Several members of the group expressed opposition to his invitation on social media, and NABJ co-chair Karen Attiah resigned in apparent reaction to Trump’s invitation.
“Although various factors influenced my decision, I was in no way involved or consulted in the decision to put Trump on the platform in this format,” said Attiah, a columnist for the Washington Post. wrote on the social network.
Tia Mitchell, Washington correspondent for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and co-chair of the event, defended Trump’s invitation on social media.
“Some have to take a step back and ask why would you want a group of JOURNALISTS to question former and possibly future President Trump,” he said.
Malik Mitchell, a high school sports reporter for North Metro TV in Minnesota, who attended the convention, said he heard from relatives about the dispute.
“When I got to the hotel this morning, my family was sending me articles about Trump being here and already reacting,” she said. “I knew there would probably be a big fuss.”
He said the event was about “Black excellence” and that he didn’t think Trump “fits into that bubble.”
“It’s like there’s someone on the street who disrespects you and suddenly you invite them to dinner,” he said. “That’s how I see it.”
Amya Henry, a recent graduate of Howard University, also said she wanted to “see for herself” what would happen to Trump’s comments.
“I think it went well,” Henry said. “I was a little skeptical at first … but you know, it was just an interesting time.”
As the question-and-answer session began, Trump responded to Scott’s question about why black voters trust him by calling the delivery of the question “disgusting.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever been asked such a terrible question,” Trump said.
He also said he was invited under “false pretenses” because his Democratic opponent was not in attendance, and he took jabs at Scott and ABC News several times throughout the event. Trump’s feud with ABC News has been escalating in recent weeks as he resents the network hosting the next presidential debate.
Trump sparred directly with Scott for much of the event, and at one point approached him and grabbed a water bottle to squeeze the lid.
After an initial back-and-forth with Scott, Trump continued to defend his record with black voters.
“I think that was a very obnoxious question,” Trump said. “I have been the best president for black people since Abraham Lincoln.”
Scott asked about President Lyndon Johnson, who signed the Voting Rights Act of 1965, but Trump did not answer directly.
Trump was also asked about his running mate, Ohio Senator JD Vance rocky rollout Following a new investigation into past comments about “childless cat ladies,” Vance is using the term to question the leadership ability of people who choose not to have children, mostly women.
Trump said the moderators would “have to ask” Vance directly, but Vance shared his interpretation of the comments that came to designate Trump after he became the nominee.
“What he’s saying is that the family experience is important, a very good thing,” Trump said.
In the same breath, he downplayed Vance’s political importance.
“Historically, electorally, the vice president has no influence,” Trump said. “You have two or three days where there’s a lot of panic … and then it’s over and it’s about the presidential election.”
For his part, Vance told reporters on the tarmac at the Phoenix airport Wednesday evening that Trump’s NABJ appearance “showed one of the good things about him, the president doesn’t do scripted BS.”
“He’s actually walking into a hostile audience,” Vance continued. “He answers difficult questions. He pushes back against it, but he actually answers them, and it’s great to have an American leader who isn’t afraid to go into hostile places and actually answer some tough questions.”
Vance criticized Harris as a “chameleon,” saying he was “confused about everything.”
“I think he was hinting at the ultimate chameleon like nature of Kamala Harris,” Vance continued. “I mean, you saw him in Georgia yesterday, and he did a Southern accent for a Georgia audience.”
When asked by Vance whether Harris is Black, he responded, “My question is why does he present a different posture, no matter what audience he’s in front of, he’s going to say one thing to say something to another audience. audience to say something completely different to another audience.
Trump was also asked about comments he made at a Wisconsin rally in May about giving police “immunity from prosecution.”
Kadia Goba, a journalist from Semaphore, questioned Trump about the recent shooting death of Sonya Massey, a black woman in Illinois, who was shot and killed by police after she called 911. Officer Sean Grayson said. he pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm and misconduct in office.
Trump appeared to backtrack, saying police shouldn’t get blanket immunity and that the Chicago shooting “didn’t look good to me.”
“There’s a big difference between being a bad person and making an innocent mistake,” Trump said. “But if someone made an innocent mistake, I would like to help that person.”
He said there should be immunity for cops when it’s a “close call and very dangerous.”
Matt Dixon reported from Tallahassee, Fla.; Yamiche Alcindor and Michelle Garcia reported from Chicago.