President Obama used Washington’s early celebration of St. Patrick’s Day to warn that the rhetoric and increasing violence emanating from and surrounding GOP front-runner Donald Trump’s campaign undermines the United States’ world standing.
“We have heard vulgar and divisive rhetoric aimed at women and minorities, at Americans who don’t look like ‘us,’ or pray like ‘us’ or vote like we do,” Obama said during the annual Friends of Ireland luncheon at the Capitol on Tuesday. “We’ve seen misguided attempts to shut down that speech [and] in response … we’ve seen actual violence; and we’ve heard silence from too many of our leaders,” Obama said at the bipartisan event honoring Irish Prime Minister Edna Kenny and Irish-Americans’ contributions.
Calling it a “race to the bottom” that all politicians must fight, Obama said the slurs and hate speech accompanying the Republican primary “is not an accurate reflection of America.” And “that corrosive behavior can undermine our democracy, and our society, and even our economy.”
The ugly talk begs the question, “How are we perceived around the world?” Obama asked. “Why would we want to see that brand tarnished? The world pays attention to what we say and what we do.”
Obama did praise House Speaker Paul Ryan for encouraging GOP candidates to unite the country with a positive message.
All “candidates have an obligation to do what they can do to try and provide an atmosphere of harmony, to reduce the violence, to not incite violence, and to make sure that we are appealing to people on their best ideals; that we are going to unite the country around ideas that unite the country so that we can actually fix our country’s problems,” Ryan said.
But Kenny underscored Obama’s concern.
It “reminds me of what President Kennedy said, that this is a time of leadership, not showmanship,” Kenny said.
The world “has always looked to America to lead; and it’s not good when we find a situation where that doesn’t apply,” Kenny added. “And that’s why, in the words of [Obama], it is really important that we focus on peace continuity and reject those who wish to return to days of violence and the dark days when these attacks were common-place.”
White House spokesman Josh Earnest later explained that Obama purposely used the jovial event to air his concerns because it offers a “stark contrast between the collegiality and camaraderie and fellowship at the bipartisan St. Patrick’s Day celebration on Capitol Hill and the divisive, vulgar rhetoric on the part of Republicans on the campaign trail.”
Obama urged attendees to continue the event’s civil spirit beyond St. Patrick’s Day, which is Thursday. The annual event was moved up because Kenny could not be in the U.S. on Thursday.
“[W]e have a choice,” Obama said. “We can condone this race to the bottom or accept it as the way things are and sink further. Or we can roundly reject this kind of behavior, whether we see it in the other party, or more importantly, when we see it in our own party, and set a better example for our children and the rest of the country to follow.
“It starts with us,” he said.
