As of yesterday, the White House was saying that, President Trump and Vice President Pence had “no scheduled plans” for Martin Luther King Day. Today, however, they visited the MLK memorial in DC, where they stood for approximately one minute before leaving. Donald Trump, as he left, made the a brief, yet inspirational, speech.
“Good morning, everybody. Great day. Beautiful day,” he said. “Thank you for being here. Appreciate it.”
Nothing about the work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was said. Nothing about civil rights was said. Nothing about public service was said.
President Trump, Vice President Pence visit MLK Memorial https://t.co/56IvHx6z8x pic.twitter.com/iwJgCbrE54
— The Hill (@thehill) January 22, 2019
While they were out of the limo for less than two minutes total, the Trump team got what they wanted… enough footage to piece together a social media post intended to demonstrate that, regardless of his vile rhetoric about immigrants and the fact that he lobbied for the execution of five innocent young black men in New York, Donald Trump really does care about civil rights and respect the work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr… They got their split second of him touching a wreath. A passing glimpse of what might be seen by some as quiet introspection. And that’s it. Job done. Then it was right back into the limo… It was just enough to get the footage they needed, while not enough to upset Trump’s racist base. It was, in other words, pure perfection.
The news reported that Trump had ‘paid his respects,’ but I didn’t see anything even resembling respect. I saw a man who clearly didn’t want to be there, and was only doing it because he was told by someone — likely his daughter — that he had to. I certainly didn’t see someone who, as Mike Pence said yesterday, was like Martin Luther King.
For what it’s worth, Trump wasn’t the only one playing around today, pretending to be a supporter of Dr. King’s. The NRA put out the following despicable social media post.
A concealed weapon, of course, wouldn’t have done much good against a sniper hiding hundreds of feet away with a rifle and a scope that he’d bought a few days before, using a false name, at a sporting goods store. If the NRA really wanted to help ensure that nothing like this happens again, they wouldn’t be talking about concealed carry on the anniversary of Dr. King’s assassination. They’ve be talking about common sense gun reforms that should have been passed into law decades ago. But, instead, they thought they’d get some cheap mileage out of the fact that a man whose life was repeatedly repeatedly threatened during the civil rights era had applied for a gun permit… It’s also worth noting, I think, that despite what they may imply here, the NRA has a history of having fought in favor of gun control when it comes to African American ownership. Just look at the 1967 “open carry” ban in California, which was designed to keep guns out of the hands of the Black Panthers.
What do you say we end on a happy note, with something from our nation’s last legitimate president? Here’s hoping we get another one soon.
A real president says what?
— Mark Maynard (@MarkAMaynard) January 21, 2019
And here’s the rest of that quote from MLK that I teased up front. It’s from his last speech — “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” — given on April 3, 1968, the night before he was assassinated. Hopefully you, like me, will take some comfort in it.
…Well, I don’t know what will happen now. We’ve got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn’t matter with me now, because I’ve been to the mountaintop. And I don’t mind. Like anybody, I would like to live – a long life; longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will. And He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over. And I’ve seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the Promised Land. So I’m happy, tonight. I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man…
