Michelle Obama Voices Pride in Baltimore Students After Trump's Twitter Rant Against Local Congressman
Michelle Obama praised students from Baltimore on Saturday, hours after President Donald Trump tweeted inflammatory remarks about parts of the Maryland city.
On Saturday morning, the president went on a Twitter rant about Rep. Elijah Cummings, a vocal critic whose district includes much of Baltimore. Trump called the district a “very dangerous & filthy place.”
In fact, however, as noted by FiveThirtyEight’s Nate Silver and others, the district “has above-average college education rates and home prices … [and] is the 2nd-wealthiest majority-black district in the country.”
According to U.S. Census data, Cummings’ district is about 53 percent African-American, while the city of Baltimore as a whole was last estimated to be about 62.8 percent African-American.
Trump, 73, called Cummings a “brutal bully” and accused him of “shouting and screaming at the great men & women of Border Patrol about conditions at the Southern Border, when actually his Baltimore district is FAR WORSE and more dangerous.”
In a third tweet, the president baselessly claimed that Cummings’ district is “considered the worst run and most dangerous anywhere in the United States.”
Hours later on Saturday, the former first lady, 55, voiced her pride for a dance team from Baltimore in honor of National Dance Day, though she didn’t respond directly to Trump’s comments.
“On #NationalDanceDay, I’m shouting out the Lethal Ladies, a Baltimore STEP team who I saw perform back in 2017,” Obama wrote alongside a video of the group, who was featured in the 2017 documentary STEP. “I’m so proud of you all—and everyone who’s dancing today!”
On #NationalDanceDay, I'm shouting out the Lethal Ladies, a Baltimore STEP team who I saw perform back in 2017. I’m so proud of you all—and everyone who’s dancing today! pic.twitter.com/U15Be9wSMs
— Michelle Obama (@MichelleObama) July 27, 2019
On Saturday, former President Barack Obama appeared to reference Trump’s recent racist comments attacking four congresswomen of color. Obama tweeted a Washington Post op-ed written and signed by African-American members of his administration.
The op-ed spoke out against Trump’s tweets earlier this month telling four Democratic congresswomen of color to “go back and help fix the totally broken and crime-infested places from which they came” despite the majority of the women being born in America.
“I’ve always been proud of what this team accomplished during my administration,” President Obama tweeted. “But more than what we did, I’m proud of how they’re continuing to fight for an America that’s better.”
RELATED: Michelle Obama Appears to Reference President Donald Trump’s Racist Comments: ‘It’s Our America’
I’ve always been proud of what this team accomplished during my administration. But more than what we did, I’m proud of how they’re continuing to fight for an America that’s better. https://t.co/0cfDltjueP
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) July 27, 2019
Earlier this month, the former first lady also appeared to reference Trump’s comments about the four congresswomen of color in a message on Twitter.
Seemingly defending the four politicians — Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, and Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts — Mrs. Obama reminded her followers that the United States is for everyone, not just those who were born here.
“What truly makes our country great is its diversity,” she tweeted. “I’ve seen that beauty in so many ways over the years. Whether we are born here or seek refuge here, there’s a place for us all.”
Mrs. Obama added, “We must remember it’s not my America or your America. It’s our America.”
