Former Attorney General Eric Holder questioned whether America was ever “great” in a rebuke to President Trump and his support base Wednesday.
In an interview with MSNBC’s Ari Melber, Holder said Trump supporters are typically nostalgic of a time in the 1800s when African-Americans and women couldn’t own property or vote.
“That’s exactly right. And that’s what I hear these things about ‘let’s make America great again’ and I think to myself, ‘exactly when did you think America was great’?” Holder, who is black, asked.
“It certainly wasn’t when people were enslaved. It certainly wasn’t when women didn’t have the right to vote. It certainly wasn’t when the LGBT community was denied the rights to which it was entitled,” he said.
The host asked Holder if the Trump slogan “Make America Great Again” was reminiscent of period in American history of heavy discrimination.
“It takes us back to what I think, an American past that never in fact really existed. This notion of greatness,” Holder replied.
“You know, America has done superb things. It has done great things. And it has been a leader in you know, a whole range of things. But we are always a work in process and … looking back, ‘Make America Great Again’ is inconsistent with who we are as Americans at our best where we look at the uncertain future, embrace it and make it our own.”
Although “Make America Great Again” has recently become synonymous with Trump and his supporters since he made it his 2016 campaign slogan, the phrase has been used by both Republicans and Democrats over the years.
For instance, former President Bill Clinton said “make America great again” during his announcement speech in 1991.
Former President Ronald Reagan used the slogan, “Let’s make America great again,” during his 1980 presidential campaign.
Holder, who was rumored to be mulling a bid for the Democratic presidential nomination, said earlier this month that he would be forgoing a run and instead focus on championing criminal justice reform initiatives.
[Previous coverage: Meghan McCain swings at Trump at her father’s memorial: ‘America was always great’]
