President Donald Trump is “worse than a racist,” Sen. Cory Booker charged on Sunday.
“The reality is, this is a guy who is worse than a racist,” the Democratic presidential contender from New Jersey told Dana Bash on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “He is actually using racist tropes and racial language for political gains, trying to use this as a weapon to divide our nation against itself.:
Trump has come under fire in recent days for increasingly incendiary remarks targeting four Democratic House freshmen of color: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts.
The women should “go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came,” the president tweeted. He also has continually questioned their allegiance to the U.S. Three of the four women were born in the U.S. and all are American citizens.
“This is somebody who is very similar to George Wallace, to racists who use — he’s using the exact same language,” Booker pointed out. Wallace, who ran for president from Alabama, was known for using racist language throughout his campaigns and time as governor.
“As somebody texted me during [Trump’s] rallies, I have seen this before — in black and white,” Booker said. “And now I’m seeing it again decades later, where I thought our country was beyond this. I’m seeing this in full color.”