The mayor of Green Bay, Wisconsin, lashed out at President Trump ahead of his town hall meeting in the city on Thursday night.
Mayor Eric Genrich said the residents of Green Bay do not tolerate “intolerance or willful ignorance” in a message posted to social media on Wednesday.
“We are an increasingly diverse city with a vibrant immigrant heritage and culture and strong connections to the indigenous people who call our region home,” the Democrat wrote in the letter. “Our instinct toward hospitality, of course, extends to our president, but I want you to know that it has its limitations. We don’t tolerate intolerance or willful ignorance, and we won’t endorse or ignore divisive and bigoted rhetoric.”
Genrich, whose letter was released a day before Trump will participate in a prime-time TV event with Fox News host Sean Hannity, said his city faces new challenges because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“The challenges we face as a community, state, and country are immense, and they have grown only more immediate with the spread of the coronavirus, the tragic deaths of nearly 125,000 Americans and the incredibly harmful impacts this virus has had on our economy,” he continued.
Genrich said the president owed it to the people of Wisconsin and the country at large to speak “directly” about the serious health implications of the coronavirus. He also demanded that Trump address systematic racism.
“If you have the inclination to do any of these things, please know I will support your efforts, regardless of our very real political differences,” Genrich wrote.
