Rep. Bill Pascrell labelled President Trump the “enabler-in-chief” Monday for his delay in naming and shaming the KKK, neo-Nazis, and other white supremacist groups in the aftermath of the deadly unrest in Charlottesville, Va., on Saturday.
“I think he’s the enabler-in-chief, which makes him basically partly responsible,” Pascrell, D-New Jersey, said at a press conference Monday afternoon just before Trump made a second statement declaring racism to be evil.
“We’re all responsible, but his responsibility is with a capital ‘R’ because he’s in the position to bring people together and he’s chosen not to.”
Pascrell used the media opportunity to press the Trump administration on its decision to revoke a federal grant for a Chicago-based group called Life After Hate in January. Life After Hate was founded by former members of the radicalized American far-right to educate young people about the threats of violent extremism.
Earlier, Pascrell tweeted Sunday Trump enabled “extreme separatists” by “immigrant-bashing” and “race-baiting.”
“.@POTUS took white nationalism to the dance during the campaign last year. He then kept them at an arms distance after the election,” he tweeted. “He pontificated about equality, but these extreme right-wing separatists were always waiting in the wings. Just ask Steve Bannon.”
Pascrell also called on the president to replace Bannon, as well as other White House aides Stephen Miller and Sebastian Gorka.
@BillPascrell says @realDonaldTrump is an “enabler in chief” at a press conference condemning terror attack in Va. pic.twitter.com/lhqnd0xHMD
— Monsy Alvarado (@MonsyAlvarado) August 14, 2017
