Civil rights icon John Lewis did not mince words in a message directed at Donald Trump, asking “have you no sense of decency, sir?”
The message from Lewis, a congressman from Georgia since 1987, and a prominent civil rights activist in the 1960s, was tweeted Saturday one day after racially charged confrontations at a rally in Chicago led Trump, the GOP front-runner, to postpone the event.
Lewis’ words are a reference to the famous line used by attorney Joseph Welch against Wisconsin Sen. Joseph McCarthy in 1954.
.@realDonaldTrump Have you no sense of decency, sir?
— John Lewis (@repjohnlewis) March 12, 2016
Lewis previously sent a longer message echoing condemning Trump for spreading bigotry. His attack echoed statements by other Trump critics, including Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, whom Lewis has endorsed for president.
“There is not any room in our society for the preaching of discord, bigotry, hatred and division. We are one people, we are one love,” Lewis said.
There is not any room in our society for the preaching of discord, bigotry, hatred, and division. We are one people, we are one love.
— John Lewis (@repjohnlewis) March 12, 2016
Lewis has chided Trump in the past for remarks critics have described as racist and sexist.
In response to Trump calling some Mexican immigrants “rapists” and his proposal to ban all Muslims from entering the U.S., Lewis, in an interview with the Los Angeles Times said, “I’ve been around a while and Trump reminds me so much of a lot of the things that George Wallace said and did. Wallace, the pro-segregation governor of Alabama, launched populist bids for president in 1968 and 1972.
“I think demagogues are pretty dangerous, really,” Lewis said. “We shouldn’t divide people, we shouldn’t separate people.”
