Posted on 02/28/2016 7:22:08 AM PST by SeekAndFind
CNN anchor Jake Tapper repeatedly asked Donald Trump on Sunday to denounce David Duke's support for his candidacy, but Trump insisted he didn't know anything about about the former KKK grand wizard.
"Will you unequivocally condemn David Duke and say that you don't want his vote and that of other white supremacists in this election?" Tapper asked Trump on "State of the Union."
But Trump, the Republican presidential frontrunner, said he didn't have enough information to answer the question:
I don't know anything about David Duke, OK? I don't know anything about what you're even talking about with white supremacy or white supremacists. So I don't know. I mean, I don't know — did he endorse me or what's going on? Because I know nothing about David Duke. I know nothing about white supremacists. And so you're asking me a question that I'm supposed to be talking about people that I know nothing about.
BuzzFeed reported last week that Duke, a prominent white nationalist, urged his supporters to back Trump. Duke was quoted saying on his radio show that "voting against Donald Trump at this point is really treason to your heritage."
On his Sunday show, Tapper continued to press Trump on the subject.
"Even if you don't know about their endorsement, there are these groups and individuals endorsing you. Would you just say unequivocally that you condemn them and you don't want their support?" he asked Trump.
But Trump again insisted again he didn't know about Duke:
I have to look at the group. I mean, I don't know what group you're talking about. You wouldn't want me to condemn a group that I know nothing about. I have to look. If you would send me a list of the groups, I will do research on them.
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
The person that asked the question was in the audience. He was taking questions and I believe the person that asked was black. He very quickly distanced himself from Duke. Of course the media won’t report on that.
Donald Trump reportedly has an IQ of 175LOL! You Trump fans will swallow anything!
Please provide any actual evidence (i.e. not a Trump Tweet), that supports that ridiculous claim.
Good point. But being a leftie, it's Tapper's job to humiliate Trump. It's Trump's job to turn that around. Trump should have brought up Farrikhan etc. Trump bobbled this one. As I'm pro-Trump, I hope he learns from it.
“Yet another issue for the dems to shred him with (and they most assuredly will) in the general.”
And what political party started the KKK? I’m sure Hillary would love for that history to be resurrected after her ‘super predator’ comment. Blacks don’t like Hillary and they won’t vote for any Republican.
If the Cruz and Rubio strategy from now on is: ‘Did you hear what Donald Trump said?’, then they’ve already lost.
A very passive aggressive response by Trump. Of course he’s not going to support David Duke and friends. But Trump is a master of his own mental martial arts, well timed answers to maintain control of the political news cycle.
My guess is by tomorrow morning, there will be a few Trump tweets disavowing white supremacists groups and notables.
Trump disavowed it during the press conference interview with Chris Christie. Where were you? More importantly, where the F was trap?
Yes.
The media continues to lose at this game yet can’t let go of it.
FOX lost me about 4 years ago. The rest of them I haven't watched in a decade.
The left's Snake Trapper might get bit one day. Rather lasted a long time pre-internet.
Trump was lobbed a softball question to distance himself from his racist supporters and keep the KKK stench off hos candidacy, and he whiffed yuge - three times!
It makes it seem as if Trump is sympathetic to racists or at least tribalism based on ancestry. Trump gave the media all they could want to characterize him as the candidate of white racism, Hitler 2.0 and the thin-skin head for president. Get ready for more "make America white again" and "make America hate again" parody. THe press has already tried to disparage the tea-party as racist, Trump is the proof.
Shocking, isn’t it? I can’t believe that FR has descended to this.
Trump hasn’t even begun to see coordinated attacks against him. One nanosecond after his nomination speech, the dems and media will open up on him like never before.
Trump’s inability to party criticism showed brightly in that debate the other night. Rubio handed him his ass and Trump knew it.
Trump is an idiot.
You’re the non-brilliant one, “Brilliant”.
Trump is 30K feet above you ground grubbers....seeing the BIG picture. Lowlifes like Duke don’t even register on his radar. It’s actually refreshing that Trump has no idea who this vile person is.
Duke’s *endorsement* was a pathetic attempt at relevance. I see you took the bait.
No, there is implicit in that question an accusation. Instead of assuming that Trump is not racist, Tapper was trying to corral Trump into DENYING he was racist. It was a trap question all the way.
If anyone really thinks that Trump keeps up with David Duke...
Trump lives in another world than that one.
*parry
“Donald Trump reportedly has an IQ of 175 . . .”
Out of what . . . a thousand?
It was a stupid question. Why should any candidate refuse the votes of any group or person? A vote from David Duke for Trump is an endorsement of the Donald’s policies, not Duke’s! That could/should have been Trump’s answer.
The KKK was a Democratic organization so it is alright for Dems to belong or have belonged...BUT...all Conservatives are condemned should they even look like they would be interested in the KKK.
That’s immaterial. Trump should’ve used that opportunity to distance himself from Duke and whiffed. Badly.
Trump is beating everyone else ...what does that make them ?
Perhaps you should you try to live up to your screen name occasionally ...you’re failing
Gotcha questions by Jake Trapper.
He could ask a hundred other questions more relevant to the American people.
Voters are NOT talking about KKK and David Duke, but they are talking about the economy, Obama’s over-reach into many areas of our lives, Supreme Court nomination controversies, Hillary’s criminality and why isn’t the FBI moving forward now, the Iran agreement, education problems, Common Core, national security, Russia, Iran, China, North Korea, nuclear arms, Cuba, trade imbalance, homelessness, etc., etc. etc.
KKK and Duke? Jake Trapper is a light-weight liberal, not a journalist.
[“I disavow him”]
There was that tee shirt guy at a Trump rally ‘KKK supports Trump’...Trump had him kicked out.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.