Donald Trump spent all of last week attacking a congresswoman for giving a correct account about how he’s a graceless pig who can’t even make condolence calls to military widows without being offensive. The congresswoman is Rep. Frederica Wilson, and she was in the car when widow Myeshia Johnson put Trump’s phone call on speakerphone. Wilson heard what he said, and called Trump out publicly for being an a–hole. The Trump White House then went into overdrive attacking Rep. Wilson, the Johnson family and gold-star families in general. White House chief of staff John Kelly was sent out to defend Trump, and he did so by blatantly lying about Rep Wilson repeatedly, insulting her, calling her names, and invoking the memory of his dead son for score cheap political points.
Rep. Wilson has demanded an apology from John Kelly, and the Congressional Black Caucus wants Kelly to apologize as well. Saturday morning, the morning of Sgt. La David Johnson’s funeral in Florida, Trump tweeted this:
I hope the Fake News Media keeps talking about Wacky Congresswoman Wilson in that she, as a representative, is killing the Democrat Party!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 21, 2017
Then on Sunday, he tweeted this:
Wacky Congresswoman Wilson is the gift that keeps on giving for the Republican Party, a disaster for Dems. You watch her in action & vote R!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 22, 2017
All because Rep. Wilson correctly reported and assessed his assholery. Well, Sgt. Johnson’s widow Myeshia Johnson has given an interview to Good Morning America. Here’s the full video. Myeshia confirms that Rep. Wilson was correct from the beginning, that Trump was offensive, that Trump didn’t even remember her husband’s name. This video is brutal and effective and heart-breaking.
FULL INTERVIEW with Myeshia Johnson, widow of fallen soldier Sgt. La David Johnson: pic.twitter.com/ILicEegmSv
— Peyton Harper (@PeytonSurfGirl) October 23, 2017
Here’s the worst part: it will not make one goddamn bit of difference. Trump and Kelly are still going to attack Rep. Wilson. Congressional Republicans will sit on their hands, grateful that Trump isn’t attacking them, and dreaming of the day – which is coming very soon – that they can push through massive tax cuts for billionaires. And Myeshia’s babies are going to grow up without a father.
Photos courtesy of Getty.
One of the bright sides of this horrible administration is watching POC call them out as the morally bankrupt, racist deplorables that they are. While the majority white Republican party abandons the interests and principles of this country, watch POC stand up and fight for what America is supposed to be. The change is still coming even with Trump as president.
I hope you’re right. As a POC I find all of this so exhausting and demoralizing.
You must be white. Fighting for our rights and asking to be treated like human beings is not a ‘bright side,’ its a fucking nightmare that never ends.
No, I’m brown and from a family of immigrants. I admit “Bright side” is not what I wanted to say. I should have used better phrasing for sure to express what I feel when I see the strength in other POC standing up to this nightmare.
Standing up with so little support and far fewer resources than the White people who made /allowed this to happen in the first place. It’s not fair to keep burdening the oppressed in this way. Lift the oppression.
She is very brave. Because she is going to be dragged through the mud for daring to tell the truth. F**k Donald Trump, Gen. Kelly and the white supremacist horse they ride.
She is so brave and has so much strength.
she is so gusty. She just lost her husband and she is calling out the President. What a strong woman, I am so impressed
Don’t read DM they are very hateful towards her saying she should be happy the dotard took the time to call her, smh.
DM continues to be trash.
Yes, I’m so glad she spoke out. It must be so hard, dealing with that on top of her husband’s death. And she’s pregnant. Poor thing. Disgusting how republicans are talking about that Congress woman’s attire.
DM is also full of paid trolls. The Russian techniques are sophisticated, and one of their primary targets are comment sections and Twitter. Their comments are easier to spot now because they are usually shockingly rude and provocative. The English is odd, or the responses or posts are concise without much detail.
Just like PR for celebrities have a group of people going around to entertainment blogs spreading doubt about true stories or defending someone to try to save their image. Just like pushing the falsehood that Blinds are always made up and they aren’t.
Don’t let them gaslight you especially about stories like this.
Yes, she is very brave but it makes my blood boil that the widow of a fallen service member has to call out the president for being a total asshole.
Makes my blood boil also. She is going through hell and she has to put up with trump and his bullshit on top of it all.
There really are no words. Amazed at the courage and grace Myeisha is displaying just two days after burying her hero of a husband!!! I loathe Trump. What an evil dispacable man. For the love of God APOLOGIZE!!!! Can’t anyone, anyone, sneak his phone away and tweet the right thing?
She is so brave and strong. I wish I could do something to protect her from the hate that will be launched her way. This hurts my heart. She has so much to focus on in her own life (mourning her husband, a baby on the way, a small child to comfort), she shouldn’t have to waste a moment on educating the president.
I would never be a republican, they are the most hateful people. Some of them posting of the internet are the most heartless people in the world. They lies just as their leader, the orange one, and they have no conscience. The things they are saying I would hate myself if I would Think of such a thing about a young mother who has lost her husband fighting to keep us free. Btw, all those people in the arm services who voted for #45 and who believes he has your best interest, just look on how he’s treating Mrs Johnson, he or his followers don’t care about you.
Magnoliarose- on Facebook and maybe Twitter, you can also look at the profiles if they have one. That can reveal extremely foreign ways of talking about jobs, military service, and education that nobody would have if experiencing them here in the US. That can distinguish between Russian trolls and people who are just foreign-born and so may have traces of their first language in their writing.
@jwoolman – slightly off-topic, but the same can be said of commenters going to great lengths to masquerade as women, especially where discussions of feminism and female-empowerment are concerned. I ran across a post (not here) from someone who by all superficial appearances was a middle-aged wife and mother in the Mid-West, but there was something not quite right about how they talked about their life and experience. As I scrolled through their writing, it dawned on me that they were pretending to be a woman in order to make their really awful views slightly less offensive.
It’s so weird how the truth and reality are now all “alternative facts”. All of Trump’s supporters see these “nasty women” (minorities, no less) attacking their dear leader rather than wondering why a President can’t even make a simple condolence phone call. What other American President needed a chief of staff to lie for him, and what other chief of staff would blatantly lie to the American press and public? This isn’t even something worth lying about (treason is a different story). Just apologize, say you’re a doofus who should not be allowed to speak and be done with it. Sheesh.
sigh. sometimes i cannot imagine surviving three more years. too often, really.
Trump already tweeted within minutes of the interview, basically calling her a liar.
The President of the United States, Commander in Chief listened to that interview and his first instinct was to say she is not telling the truth instead of taking into account how awful it must be to be told you can not see your husband’s body – the grief she feels in not knowing what happened to him and the lifetime of grief she will have for her unborn child who will never know her father.
No, he listened to all that and his first instinct is to attack her on the part about him. He has no soul, no heart. He is hollow husk where even the most basic of decent human emotions should live and is only full only dishonesty, insecurity and narcissism.
This exactly.
But Kaiser is right that it won’t make any difference. My brother in law (a Trump supporter) posted on facebook the other day about how liberal media can twist anything to serve their purposes. It just blows my mind that people still buy into his bullshit. They have eyes. They have ears. I guess what they don’t have is the courage or the ability to think for themselves.
They may have eyes and ears but between them it’s empty.
They are wilfully blind and deaf and they lack empathy. I cannot be bothered to debate with these people anymore. If what has been happening doesn’t change their opinion then no reasoned argument or fact or play to empathy will. I just have nothing to say to them and no desire to waste my time trying anymore.
An old friend of mine – who is himself old – will probably die before we ever speak again, but I can’t accept old age as an excuse for not being accountable for his support for this misery.
Your statement makes me think that the States will never know just how much damage this man has done to his country. Not just the big picture but also the fabric of the country. The families destroyed, the friendships lost, the people ejected from the country…. The list of damage he has wrought is too long to count, and the effects will last generations. Has the States ever had such a divisive leader before?
I won’t talk to almost an entire side of my family. I don’t care if Louisiana is a red state. The damage is done, and only my Memere, who voted for HRC because she wanted to see a woman in charge and a few others are welcome in my life. I know some of them are pissed at me but so be it. I have some relatives in Charleston, and South Carolina is red, but they didn’t vote for him so that red state excuse is crap.
Report his tweets. I do it every time he attacks someone or make racists statements about a group of people. I feel like we have to keep a constant drum beat of objection until the pressure is too great for Twitter to bear.
Excellent idea. Just reported him for two other tweets as well.
Good idea.
Would you please plaster this all over social media & get a trend starting?
– from a non- twitter, non -facebook person.
The Trump dumpster fire continues to burn out of control.
He’s absolutely despicable.
He’s attacking because he knows she’s right.
and he wants to take attention away from the sh*t show of events that caused the four deaths and led to this entire twitter “war”. and the calls for investigation into the events.
Benghazi, anyone?
and Kelly should resign. he got up there and deliberately lied about Rep Wilson and what she said at that building dedication. he didn’t “mischaracterize” what she said, he OUTRIGHT LIED about it and said that she said things that she did not. which was then very quickly verified when the video of those remarks was produced. apologize, Kelly, and then resign. you’re no better than drumpf.
Kelly drank the Trump Kool Aid back when he was at DHS. He went for a second glass when he became COS. He is as morally bankrupt as the rest of them.
I think we all know what Kelly is like now, he showed his true colours, and is despicable as the orange clown is, but I dont know any person with decency would work for and speak for that conman that got himself into the whitehouse anyway. He is another rat on the ship and I hope he goes down aswell.
Trump’s other pit bull, Sarah HS, is claiming that Rep. Wilson said what Kelly claimed off-camera in other conversations. But it’s really hard to believe that she could have been claiming credit for getting the funding for the building and calling Obama to magically get the money instantly, considering that she wasn’t in Congress at the time the money was raised.
She did rightfully take partial credit for pushing through the legislation later to name the building after the two FBI agents killed in the line of duty, although she named certain Republicans and Democrats as helping enormously to push it through so uncharacteristically fast. As she said at the time, everyone told her it would take at least 8 months, but she felt it could be done faster and she was right. She said that this showed how supportive members of Congress were of the FBI and law enforcement officers in general. There was no puffery or self-aggrandizement involved, contrary to what even Tapper was saying (he didn’t think it was an abnormal amount for a Congress person, but to me it wasn’t right to even say it that way). It’s not puffery to honestly say what role you had in promoting a piece of legislation.
@jwoolman There is no way his body was in the open for 48 hours. Niger simple has too much wildlife. To me, the most plausible explanation is that he was taken prisoner, killed, and his body was left as a warning.
Re: Benghazi… everyone always forgets that the rethuglicans cut 300M$ from embassy security budgets prior to the assault. Mofos always forget that gigantic and pertinent fact.
The part about not being allowed to view her husband is disturbing. She said she has no idea what is in the casket.
I recall the congresswoman saying the widow was upset that she could not have an open viewing, but the interview this morning indicates Mrs. Johnson was not ever allowed to privately view him. It’s one thing to advise someone to not view, but to not allow? Anyone have any idea as to why that would happen? He is her husband, not a piece of government property, correct?
I would demand to see. No matter how awful.
If they continued to refuse then I would demand the DNA results that were used to determine this was indeed my husband.
I felt it was a really morbid thought so I hadn’t shared it but I feel the same. I am very worried there is either nothing in that casket or someone who is not her husband.
makes one wonder if it’s even her husband’s body. I think she has her doubts about that, too.
or they just don’t want her to be able to figure out that her husband was alive when they left him behind, that he was subsequently kidnapped, tortured and THEN left for dead, a mile from where he was found. it’s a big CYA, in my opinion.
Having grown up in an area where open viewings are common, I understood someone wanting that type viewing.
The not allowing it just sounds more alarms. I hope someone in the family (or the congresswoman) pushed the issue and demanded to be told WHY no one was allowed that brief goodbye and confirmation of identity. So many unanswered questions…
This is horrifying. She had every right to view the open casket.
Glad to hear the Black Caucus is getting involved, too. This isn’t over just yet, that’s for sure.
I hope she gets $ to sue the government about this.
Let’s be clear, this was a massive f–k up by the military and intelligence agencies. La David was described as being “separated” from his unit. If he was captured by the militants and tortured and executed, it would be a PR nightmare and god knows how Trump would respond. I am cynical enough to believe the military is covering up a lot in this incident.
I can see wanting to spare her that final image, but somebody she trusted really needed to see it for her own piece of mind, and DNA evidence is a very reasonable request. There are so many unanswered questions at this point particularly about the delay finding her husband’s body and why he was so far away from the others.
Some reporter asked Trump if he had authorized the mission and he just ignored the question. I wouldn’t be surprised if he hadn’t authorized it in particular, since their immediate mission was to talk with village elders to get some information and the ambush later was completely unexpected. But why not just say “it was a very routine part of their larger mission and did not need my specific approval”? Trump keeps making his own problems.
@Who ARE these people? You have no rights as a member of the military to sue the government. She could sue under the Freedom of Information Act and if the mission wasn’t labeled Top Secret could find out how he died that way.
I think I read that she even asked to see his hand, etc. Even if she didn’t get to see his entire body, just being able to see a small area that would confirm that it was him would probably have given her some needed closure.
He really thinks he’s going to fight a military widow and win?? He needs to sit down and someone in the White House needs to take away his f-king phone.
Well said, mia girl.
She is brave and more classier than I would have been because I would’ve had to have been bleeped every other word
It’s sad that the disgrace in the White House has already tweeted out since the interview, calling Mrs Johnson a liar! I’d ask what is wrong with that scumbag, but it would be easier to list the things that aren’t. WHO ATTACKS A WIDOW THAT JUST LOST HER HUSBAND??!
She’s black. They attack her because they know that for all that his base “supports the troops” and “respects the sanctity of women” it was always about bigotry.
Yeah. I mean, Trump is literally loyal to no one, except possible Ivanka. He would and has turned on his rich white friends if necessary to protect his narcissistic delusions. However, anyone who is not white I don’t think he even considers human to begin with.
Ivanka courts her fathers favour but I think many do not realize he would turn on her in an instant if she was ever to speak unfavorable about him. He is not capable of unconditional love or likely any love for that matter. He’s a true blue sociopath.
That woman who just lost her husband brought me to tears. No easy feat.
I totally believe her. Every single word.
She made me cry, too. I can only imagine what she’s living through…Trump is so low, I keep thinking he can’t go any lower—and then he does this. What a bloated, racist sociopath, to announce that this poor woman is lying. And he “respects our troops” so much he told the NFL to fire any players who would not stand for the National anthem? Such a hypocrite! I can’t bear him, I’ve never hated a living person so much…
That this woman has to go through this on the heels of losing her husband while pregnant is beyond sad, embarrassing, and infuriating. None of those words do it justice. I cannot believe this is America, but I think the truth is I was naive about America for too long.
I have always had issues with America. I remember questioning early on why people have such blind allegiance to the flag and this country. Heaven forbid we think critically on some of the faults we have. We also celebrate cruel holidays like Thanksgiving and Columbus day, all the while brainwashing the young to think we made best friends with the Natives and that Pocahontas fell in love with a white man. Give me a break. I think my feelings got even worse with the Iraq war and seeing how blind my fellow citizens were to the lack of evidence and reasoning. But nothing compares to how I feel now, I used to try and see the good even in the ugly times. We used to have standards of behavior and decency. This country is almost irredeemable to me. if these sickos can’t feel empathy and compassion for a war widow and rather blindly follow a pathological sociopath I want nothing to do with them. They are not human to me anymore.
I understand you because I am in the same headspace. If I am honest with myself, it is a relief, and I don’t feel burdened by trying to understand and struggling to see good where it doesn’t exist.
Use that energy to protest so they will at least be uncomfortable and harassed.
I don’t even know what to say anymore about this other than my heart breaks for Ms Johnson and family. I ran out of words when Kelly doubled down on trashing Rep Wilson and cannot believe how Trump cannot. let. anything. go.
I just have to say: I admire Myeisha’s grace and strength. I would be a blubbering mess, cursing Trump, Kelly, the entire GOP and its voters to hell! Her husband and the four other soldiers, gave their lives for reasons we still aren’t clear of. People need to get off that Animals tweets and ask him what happened. Why was Sgt. Johnson’s body found 1 mile away from the others? Was he still alive when they left him? Was he kidnapped? Did he realize he was left behind and tried to escape? What happened?
Wasn’t he left behind? He’s a soldier too but if his race didn’t play into his abandonment I would be very surprised. As I stated elsewhere, the root value of these people is bigotry.
I honestly believe they saw a bunch white bodies amongst a bunch of black ones and scooped up the white ones, assuming they were the only Americans. Just admit it.
How is it his body wasn’t found for two days, and a mile away from the firefight location? Investigation, please.
No joke, right? That’s probably why Ms. Johnson can’t have an open casket.
That should be what he’s focused on, not calling a Congresswoman “wacky,” attacking the Democrats, and making up lies to cover up his provable lies
A young black pregnant military widow is getting trashed by the POTUS. I’m just sick.
It’s literally nauseating, isn’t it? I am trying to think what might show our gratitude for her sacrifice and support for her as she receives the abuse from our “president.”
I wonder how the families of the other three who were killed on this moronic mission at doing.
I think people are responding. The gofundme account for her husband is a few grand shy of $700,000. I imagine/hope after today’s TV program it will go up again.
I also wonder how the other three families are doing. Their (soldiers) actions are being undermined by the foul racist attacking one of the widows.
I feel for all four families and hope they can find a measure of peace.
It’s wrong to expect anything of the other three families in their grief but it would mean a lot if they came forward to support her and share this public burden.
Do you have a link to the GoFundMe? I’m giving.
Just put gofundme La David Johnson in your search engine.
Ugh there’s deplorables leaving nasty comments on her gofundme.
Yes, and a black female representative. It is so obvious why he chooses to attack certain people.
This is just not right. He’s so morally bankrupt.
Does Trump really not know how appalling and distasteful these tweets are?
Do the number of likes trick him into thinking this is ok? I ask because he truly seems to believe he is on the right side and that the congresswoman is the one to destroy democrats.
Or is it that he lives in a bubble and something tells him this is okay? Is he playing to the gallery?
Was he emboldened in his racism by winning the election? Did that make him think nastiness is a win-win?
How does a president get away with calling people wacky? Did Obama /Bush sound like this?
I am not American which is why I have to ask this loud .
I am American and I ask these questions all the time. His behavior is unfathomable.
Me too.
Every day I wake up and think “What new nightmare is in store for us today?” and each day, it seems, there’s a new low to this dishonorable mess.
Literally, every single day, I am stopped in my tracks by how horrible, stupid, hypocritical, vengeful, petty, spiteful, narcissistic, and boastful our asshole of a president is. He is completely unable to empathize or sympathize or admit to making a mistake.
I am baffled that he has so many supporters. I don’t understand it at all. I never understood it. He has always been a buffoon. I really hope some good things happen at the midterms, because even though he is an asshole, there are many other horrible republicans in office just waiting to take away our rights. Remember when Bush used to say that Al Qaeda hated our freedom? Nope, it’s the republicans, they hate our freedom because it allows women to have control over their bodies and immigrants to come and go as they please! We are all going to suffer in the years to come, and I just have no hope at all anymore. Tiny bit thankful I don’t have kids because I seriously don’t see a bright future 🙁 🙁 🙁 (And yes, these are thoughts that go through my head at least once a day….I seriously avoid the news these days)
He does not have the number of supporters that you think. He won only 20 percent of the America electorate, with more than half of eligible voters not voting.
His supporters are loud angry people, trolls who revel in creating this conflict, Russian bots furiously spreading misinformation. Of course they are going to be seen as the majority.
We must get everyone to the voting booth in 2018 and ruben 2020.
His supporters are also well-off, mild-mannered white men and women who live in good houses in the ‘burbs and just like what he stands for. A lot of them are lifelong Republicans. Some of them are self-styled “independents” who are really just Republicans pretending to be smart. They’re everywhere; they’re not just loud and angry trolls. And they will be the LAST people to admit that they were in any way shaped, formed or influenced by Russian – or American right-wing – propaganda. They think that they think for themselves.
@WhoATP
That used to be true but his soft supporters have abandoned him and it is truly the devoted left and I believe the polls are lies. I don’t know how they are doing it but I believe they are.
@Magnoliarose I wish that were true, but the folks on my Facebook who fit that profile certainly haven’t abandoned him…wish they were as upset about this as they are about kneeling football players ‘dishonoring the troops’
No leader in my lifetime has acted this way (seemingly devoid of common decency and empathy). As for ‘likes’, my guess is that the majority are troll farm leftovers trying to sow chaos.
The first President I remember was Eisenhower. I have never in my entire life seen a President act and talk the way Trump does. It is simply bizarre. Sarah Palin was the first Vice Presidential candidate who scared me also -she was hateful and ignorant, kind of a Trump Lite. Ronald Reagan was very destructive as a President and very ignorant about some key things, but he was not the hateful person that Trump is. So he didn’t provoke the extreme anxiety that Trump does.
There is something so terribly wrong with Trump as a person, and he draws people to him who are likewise seriously flawed.
We are witnessing pure evil in the form of trump, Kelly, Huckabee Sanders and the others who are in this administration. They no longer get a pass as “mentally deranged.”
It’s pure evil to use someone’s suffering to make oneself blameless. A decent people would have admitted their error or poor choice of words, but trump and Kelly chose to treat Mrs Johnson and the Congresswoman with horrible lies, furthering their unspeakable pain.
You are seeing pure evil in the people who are who are at the highest echelon of our government.
This is beyond disgrace.
Truly. I can’t even articulate how much disgust I feel for this creature. His disrespect for this young woman and her husband, by continuing to tweet and lie about his behavior, is beyond the pale.
Anther day another black woman being attacked. Par for the course. And of course let’s watch the utter silence in her defense but then people will get mad when black women won’t jump into the fray for them.
This is why. We see the silence.
Preach!!! Exactly! Also, let’s not forget, no one can attack General Kelly for the lying scumbag he is because he’s a Goldstar father. Myeisha is the epitome of what is left behind; now a single mother with THREE children! Let’s see who defends her.
No. We’re here for Ms. Johnson.
Can you explain Nicole? No snark I am genuinely interested.
A professor I know has started a feminist salon(tongue in cheek), but the effort was made to make sure it was inclusive because you can’t be a feminist if you don’t support women of all backgrounds. It has been great, and we can’t stop talking
I am curious what you mean and if you don’t mind an example. Cause I want to get it.
I read it this way: when that nurse was attacked by a cop, in Utah, they came is droves to defend her. He was placed on leave, and then ultimately fired from both his jobs.
People did not delve into her background, saying every bad thing she’s ever done. She wasn’t made to answer for her entire race, because she didn’t let a op draw blood illegally.
it was a huge difference in the approach, and I think it was because she is white. Not because she was right, which she was.
just my opinions and thoughts, but that’s how I read Nicole’s post. People are supporting Myeshia, but the overall reporting even, is different. again, JMO.
For instance: Leslie Jones was attacked on twitter and the woman support her were mostly black.
Anything happens to white women and the response is large and tend to co-opt something from black women. Did you know Me Too was started by a black woman? Or Pantsuit Nation who shut down any conversation of intersectionality in reference to the Women’s March.
White women want black women to come to their defense but are utterly silent when we get attacked. Black women are tired are putting their bodies on the line for white feminism
@Nicole, there’s lots of support for black women from white women, I’m sorry if you don’t see it. If I need defense, or another person needed my help, I wouldn’t turn my back on them because of their race. Unless you know ALL of the white women in the world, and they all think the same exact way as each other, you can’t make the claim that we’re all silent and insist that white women want you to put your lives on the line for white feminism
Really Beth? You want to #notallwhitewomen me? The evidence is there over and over and over again.
But yea I’m done with this conversation because yea I expected at least one response like this and frankly I’m tired
This is not at you Magnolia, just a comment in general.
But the fact that any effort had to be made to make the group you mentioned inclusive kinda says it all, you know?
I know what you meant, I believe, and the feeling behind the group who made sure minorities were represented. But again, it kinda solidifies Nicole’s point.
just my thoughts. always, just what I am thinking.
Beth, just take a moment and reflect on what Nicole is saying. White women who practice intersectional feminism must do more to let WOC know that we support them. If they don’t feel supported, we can’t say their perspective is wrong. What we can do is reach out more. Be a bridge. But even as you or I reach out more…we must understand that people have experiences with people who don’t believe in equality. Kind actions do not erase the damage that other people do. A person doesn’t need to know all of the white women in the world to form a valid opinion on her own experiences in the world.
@nicole, thank you for your perspective. I think it’s fair to say that white women don’t necessarily show up in support of black women, and that’s wrong (wrong as in unfair to black women, not like it’s an incorrect assessment).
I don’t know how many other people feel this way, but I know that I am always hesitant to say “I’m white” in a conversation like this because I worry that it’s going to come across not as, “I’m an ally,” but as “not all white women,” although that really isn’t the way that I mean it. I’m hesitant to ask this because I recognize that it’s not POC’s responsibility to educate white people, but since I’m already saying a bunch of stuff that I’m worried is going to be misinterpreted and hurt people, do you have suggestions as to how to handle that? I want to be a good ally, but I don’t want to co-opt the discussion or speak over WOC.
If you’re an ally your actions will speak clearly and plainly. But the reason I made the statement is because the level of response HAS been different. Please take a look at black twitter and a lot of the leaders there. They spoke about the same thing I mentioned here last week. Allies are easy to spot: they are the first to listen, promote leaders IN the marginalized community and they don’t get hurt when people criticize something with “but i’m not part of (insert problem here)”.
I’m straight and consider myself an ally of the LGBTQIA community. But I won’t ever jump into that conversation saying that. I absorb, take in the critique if offered and adjust. Because I’m not marginalized in that way therefore I don’t speak for that community as to what’s important.
Thank you for responding.
@ArchieG
You are right about the fact that we even had to make it a point to be inclusive. There was no trust that automatically that would have been a given that black women and other minority women were welcome. It does make me feel ashamed, but we want to change that. The upshot is some WOC did come but not enough. That has to change.
@Nicole
I understand what you are saying, and it is a raw truth. I follow April, and some other outspoken black women on Twitter and the pattern is crystal clear. You would have to blind or stupid not to see the discrepancy. Even the HW scandal showed the problem of privileged white feminism. I learned that Alyssa is not responsible for #metoo though she didn’t credit the woman who is. Black women had to do it. A group stole Oscarsowhite but then didn’t credit April and lied about how inclusive it was. I noticed these feminist conferences are all white. Geesh it is appalling, and I have learned some but have a long way to go. Now I understand why you get fed up with us sometimes. It is like you are talking, but we are talking over you.
Nicole, I know I’m late. But you are wonderful. Every comment you’ve posted on this thread, and many others, has been utter perfection. I can only imagine the emotional labor it takes. You are so damn valuable to this space. *hugs*
Thanks guys. These stories are sore subjects lately due to all the attacks on black women lately or co-opting of our words. We also process racial topics in my job and school daily so it’s a lot of emotional labor.
What happened in this thread was an attempt at erasure of my experience and yes my patience with it wears thin on a good day. Even on CB there’s always one.
But the. I come back hours later on the thread to see responses like Tiffany or Shambles (and many many more of you) that makes that burden a little worth it.
The attacks on the widow and the congresswoman are so unjust and heartless. I am outraged. This is truly a low point in a year of low points.
Hi Nicole. After reading this whole sub-thread, I just wanted to say: I am here for Ms. Johnson. I support her. I regret to say that I am not on Facebook or Twitter and I have slacked off somewhat on sending letters and emails, but I vow to you to write to her personally and let her know that, for whatever my support is worth, she has it.
What utter silence are you referring to with this widow? Seems like many are jumping to her defense.
For all those trashing Kelly, I read a thread that gave me if not peace, then a little clarity (Kaiser, I apologize, I can’t remember the rule on links, so remove if this violates the terms): https://mobile.twitter.com/HoarseWisperer/status/921138474094350342
Kelly is performing kabuki for Trump. That’s it. He’s a narcissist, so if Kelly needs to dance and if it’s Kelly that’s preventing Trump from launching a nuclear weapon at Korea, I will let him dance.
I feel just terrible for Ms. Johnson.
Wow this part:
‘So, while you may hate the words coming out of his mouth, remember, you aren’t the audience… and he probably does too. While distasteful to hear, I hope he keeps doing exactly what he’s doing because the second he stops, he’s out… and we’re in trouble.’
I keep bouncing between he’s a believer and we can’t trust him at all & he’s just trying to keep Dump from killing us all as Mueller gets closer.
If we’re still alive when this is all over the books these people will write about their time in the WH will be mind blowing.
The first half of General Kelly’s Speech was a wonderful and dignified cleanup to Trump’s error and neutral enough to also appease Trump’s ego. During the second half he fully embodied the inhuman aspects of Trump: he called a Congress Woman nasty and juvenile names and flat out *lied* and demeaned her. He examplified what he was lambasting about our current times: hate for women and going past regular politics to nasty personal attacks. All news media showed his speech followed By Representative Wilson’s actual speech which was the complete opposite of what he had said it was. His facts were all wrong. Former director Comey even included her in his own gratitude speech that day. https://youtu.be/MBb-atybXQo
He lost the credibility to continue calling himself the adult in the room and became a political hack. The media, other military generals and many Americans see him now as tarnished. You can’t swim with Trump in the mud and remain unsoiled.
No, I got that. Beyond this speech, I’m pretty certain that my politics align nowhere with Kelly’s. But if Kelly wants to stay in the White House where he can stand between us and literal nuclear war, *so long as he apologizes after this whole mess is cleaned up* I will take it on faith from people who have to manage other NPD people that that is what Kelly is doing. He is literally dancing for an audience of one, because if he alienates that audience, he is out and the wall between our insane president* and total ruination of the world becomes that much more rickety.
And I don’t think his ridiculous attack on Rep. Wilson was needed for his kabuki to soothe The Donald. The first part of his remarks would have been sufficient. Kelly even took the blame for the offensive words, although Trump probably didn’t realize that this also confirmed that he did say that despite all his denials.
The problem with that is that citizens have no way of knowing if he is just giving the appearance of supporting the Trump agenda or if he actually does support the Trump agenda. It is horrible that we even have to be put into this position. Nothing that Kelly has done so far gives me hope that he is just playing along for the good of the country.
Wow, I got chills when she said she didn’t have anything to say to Trump.
She’s been going through so much since her husband was declared missing and then killed. To sit there like that and speak in a calm and measured way takes more strength than most people have.
Trump is just making this worse with every tweet. His ego is so big and sensitive, that it’s impossible for him to admit that he’d made a mistake and apologize. These insensitive tweets are like pouring gasoline on a raging fire.
I doubt he thinks he made a mistake.
This is all so heartbreaking that I feel sick. Mrs. Johnson, thank you for your family’s brave sacrifice for the rest of us. Thank you for being so courageous during your terrible grief and speaking out. Your husband was an extraordinary man. It’s such a travesty that you must again stand up to evil while you are grieving.
I can only hope to emulate your courage and grace.
Amen!
It didn’t take long for the widow to be attacked. Go ahead President Stupid create another week of bad press, force your administration to defend this round of ratchet and have the tax plan hampered.
It’s sickening that such a vile creature occupies the White House and uses his bully pit to attack innocent people. The mere fact that she will now be a target of Trump & his supporters shows just how much the dumbing down of Americans has succeeded. And any POC who stands up to him receives the full brunt of the racist hate. My prayers and thoughts go out to this brave widow. I can’t imagine what she’s going through.
This article really saddens me:
Corrosion of Support for First Amendment
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/daily-202/2017/10/23/daily-202-the-corrosion-of-support-for-first-amendment-principles-started-before-trump-he-s-supercharged-it/59ed49b130fb045cba000926/
I’m charging my phone and a, really busy can you call them?
Hi Minx – I think this was meant for someone you know personally? Or am I not understanding a meta response to the Dotard?
There is something fundamentally wrong with Donald Trump.
Yes, but you just figured that out? ; )
Do NOT go to DM and read the comments on this matter.
Please DO GO to NPR’s Morning Edition and listen to the interview with Khizr Khan. This Pakistani born man is 10,000 times the American patriot that trump or his cultists could ever hope to be. I cried while listening to Mr. Khan who truly understands what sacrifice is.
http://www.npr.org/2017/10/23/559073306/khizr-khan-says-his-faith-in-america-is-stronger-than-ever?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=morningedition&utm_term=nprnews&utm_content=2050
I read his biography. He’s another humble and patriotic person.
Khizr Khan always makes me feel better.
I honestly have hatred for this man. This man who is hell bent on stripping everything that is good away from the United States leaving us with the disgrace.
I thought I knew what hatred was when Cheney was acting President. I was naive.
I was horribly naive thinking cheney was the worst
Go figure, turns out I had no clue how bad it could really be
And I’m a republican from the age of 18-48 but I’m voting Dem 100% no matter what position or office this ticket, i dont care who they are as long as they are not republicans
Welcome, Shelly! We’re a fun party! (Okay, maybe not the leadership, but the rank and file are pretty nice!)
Shelly- I always used to split my ballot but got to the point where I wouldn’t vote for a Republican for dogcatcher… All because of what the national party was inflicting on us.
The Republican Party wasn’t always this way. It used to be quite diverse. And it was common for both parties to work together in Congress.
Me too. That is strength.
I understand her need to see her husband. I wouldn’t be able to grieve if I was denied that. They met when they were 6. When she says she knows every part of him she’s telling the truth.
There needs to be an investigation. Her questions demand answers.
Can we pause a moment from the utter disgrace that is Orange Voldy to focus a moment on his daughter in law Lara, who was so starved for attention and motivated, no doubt, to be included in daddy’s will, that she chimed in with a lie that she had seen a non-existent transcript, which even if it did exist, but it doesn’t, she would have no clearance to see? What the hell is wrong with her?
My heart aches for Myeshia Johnson and her beautiful children
It’s interesting, and sad, to note how this sick man has corrupted his children. Consequently, they’ve attracted vile, amoral people into their lives. The chain of dysfunction is unbroken. I’m horrified. And I’ll say again, I resent like hell being exposed to, and affected by, this no good family’s astonishing brand of batshit crazy. Get it away from me!
I think the fact that she married into that family bespeaks a soft-headed woman full of self-hatred. 45 never talks about DILs, but they look like he chose them for his sons. There is something off about them though.
She’s married to Eric The Unloved, so she has to score something for the team.
I saw a photo the other day of Eric the unloved kissing Lara’s cheek. It made me want to vomit. Like someone on here said I once, he’s the poster child for the term “hellmouth.”
Lol, Yeah, he is gross. Both of his sons are revolting inside and out. I have no idea where they found these women, but both are jarring in their similarities. He did pick them; I thought I heard that, but it is TRUE! Shady.
DJ and Eric used to be heavy yet they body shame women.
It took me a minute this weekend to figure out who Lara Trump was when this transcript garbage came up…I’d been blissfully ignorant about her until this. I’ll say the same thing I say to all the Trumps these days — “Go f^ck yourself.”
My heart aches for the Johnson family, too.
I’m waiting for Ivanka to trot out her children in an attempt to distract. That whole family is foul.
What about the fake FB account and post that someone made in MJ name about 2 days ago?
Absolutely disgusting. Some trumpet on Twitter yesterday tried to tell me that if it was fake, liberals must have made it to make Trump look bad. There is no end to their delusions
Strong woman. Amazing. RIP La David.
Why Twitter hasn’t disabled his account yet is beyond me.
Twitter rules don’t apply to Trump.
I just finished a meeting with a person who supports Trump/ism. I schooled myself to listen because I am trying to understand (also, he’s a client). This 73 year old man believes that “outside forces” who are now called “globalists” are trying to control America, and that Donald Trump (whom this man finds distasteful in many regards, and was eager to tell me so) is going to save us from the globalists (whom he believes control the Democratic party and the media) because he perceives Trump to be (1) smart, (2) tough and (3) a good businessman.
I have moved back to my hometown where this sort of thinking is common. People here don’t travel much and when they do they like to go to places that are like here. They are incurious and traditional and because of their lack of exposure are susceptible to a person like Trump. Just something I wanted to share here because I feel like we need to understand why people will tolerate Trump’s grossness, including the unconscionable treatment of Mrs. Johnson. They actually believe that there is some enormous boogeyman coming to take their way of life and DT stands between it and them. Talk about a con.
My guess is years of media programming (faux news). Not sure how anyone can de-program people who don’t question the talking points they’ve been fed.
Sounds like the anti-Semitic thinking and propaganda prevalent in Europe, especially in the 30s. It’s back, but Bannon & friends are smart enough to use the word “globalists” instead of “Jews.” Your client is, knowingly or not, anti-Semitic. And believe it or not, I know older men who are actually Jewish who succumbed to this thinking. They have Jewish kids and grandkids, being raised as Jews. It’s horrifying. It’s also so damn and willfully ignorant.
Sounds like he’s drunk the Bannon/Breitbart koolaid, probably along with a heavy dose of Fox propaganda. I live in a big city, Chicago, and sadly plenty of people here share his views, so it’s not necessarily geography at play.
I also don’t see any backing off of support for Trump, just people digging their heels in harder. It’s so easy now for them to dismiss anything negative as “fake news.” I never imagined we as a country would descend to such ignorant depths.
We used to be called “bankers” and blamed for all the economic ills of the world. There was an article recently that said how anti-Semites have always found a way to make antisemitism acceptable by using different tactics. Right now they are winning because they have successfully attached it to Israel while purposely under-reporting the terrorist attacks in Israel. No coverage for a van that mowed down seven people and on and on. They control the UN, so they successfully pushed a campaign that is believable because in some way it has always been a little “understandable” to dislike Jews. They frame it, to they make it seem like we are *eye roll* whining or hypersensitive because of the Holocaust if we call someone out. We are pushy, money-grubbing, cheap, so it helps with the “globalist” label.
That is how I can understand some problems of white Christian privilege when they try to school me on Israel like I don’t get it because I am Jewish. They do it to all minorities. The try to school the NFL players on the right way they should protest their own issue. But then a minority is whining and unfair when we want justice or equality. Slavery was over two hundred years ago=the Holocaust was 70 years ago they imply with their dismissiveness. We are whining, and our complaining makes them the actual victims.
They have made an effort to break the relationships we had with the black community, and sadly it is working. It is a strategy. Separate a white group with influence and economic power from black people who could use that to benefit their community. They learned from the Civil Rights movement and wanted to make sure we stand back this time so they can marginalize black people.
I was shocked when I heard a Jewish person say black people don’t like us anymore why should we care.
It breaks my heart.
Thank you for this perspective. I am trying to flesh out my understanding of this issue because it makes zero sense on the surface. When you add in the antisemitism it clarifies (except that Trump’s daughter and grandchildren are Jewish so how….??? Nevermind.)
How do they think Trump is anti-globalist when his brand is literally global with hotels in many countries??!?
THAT MAKES NO SENSE!!!!!!!!!!! Also America practically invented globalization. I can go to almost any country in the world and find an American chain restaurant to eat at.
Amidst this political mess, I am glad Myeshia was able to share her story following this tragedy. She made it very clear what transpired and how she was treated, along with the impact this has on her family. It was heartbreaking to hear in her words what a good soldier La David was and how far he could have gone had he survived. That’s what hits so hard. She was so proud of him, and Trump couldn’t even get his name right. Ugh. Tears. La’David deserved so much better.
I hope no one is surprised by this because no one should be. This is ‘ol “grab ’em by the p*#*sy” after all. He doesn’t respect women in general, let alone a black woman. He gives no f&$ks about US citizens unless you’re rich and white like he is.
There are A LOT of Trump minions out there and now that they have a mouth-piece who happens to be the POTUS, they are being very bold.
I just read on CNN Melania is heading to Michigan to address bullying. I’m like can you please start first by going down the hallway and taking away your husband’s phone? I have no idea how Myeisha found the composure to do that interview. It broke my heart and I too wonder if her husband is really in that casket. Every day brings fresh horror and a new low.
I thought unemployment and toxic water were bigger issues in Michigan than bullying. She’s such an ass.
Yes she went to Bloomfield Hills, a well off suburb of Detroit, to a middle school to talk about bullying. Gross! I’m in Michigan and if she decided to show her sorry ass at my children’s school I would take them out for the day. How dare she speak about bullying when her husband acts the way he does! She deserves egg in her makeup-caked face for this. Go away Melania, Michigan doesn’t want you.
‘Here’s the worst part: it will not make one goddamn bit of difference.’
^^^THIS^^^
It won’t matter to Trump and his supporters. He’s already tweeted that Myeshia Johnson is wrong. He can’t accept responsibility and apologize, even if it means continuing to hurt Johnson, a military widow. It’s absurd that his supporters won’t find fault in his behavior towards this grieving family yet view NFL players kneeling to protest racial inequality as ‘disrespecting the troops’.
i don’t understand how these people can be so cruel with a woman that just lost her husband. Don’t they have limits?
I hope this brave lady gets all the help she and her children need. There’s a gofundme for the education of the children,
when drumpf mocked a disabled person, that right there showed us that no, he and his ilk most def DO NOT have limits.
The Wash Post had an article today about presidential protocols for reaching out to families of fallen Gold Star soldiers.
Apparently Trump has reached out to all such families but a significant percentage have refused to accept his calls and/or invitations to the White House.
I mean even if you disagreed with Bush or Clinton or Obama, you still respected the Office and would never turn down a call from the President. The fact so many have reminds us that its not just a case of people disliking Trump but of many many having zero respect for him as Commander in Chief (the one who couldn’t be drafted for Vietnam because he had a “bone spur”)
This is so sad and damaging.
Respect is earned not given. trump, as usual, has no one to blame for this other than himself.
He does not deserve respect.
You’ve seen what happened when someone took his call. A pregnant widow is being publicly trashed in the media and being called a liar. That’s what happens when you take his call. His incompetence and narcissism have turned what should be a respectful moment into a farce. In retrospect, she would have had more peace if she refused.
It is sad that the office of the Presidency has fallen so far. I do not blame them one bit for not taking his call. He calls so that HE can look good, not to offer comfort. These grieving families need to focus on taking care of themselves. If it would not make them feel better to take the call, then they shouldn’t take the call.
The military is not as supportive of him as he likes to think. Attacking McCain isn’t very bright, and now they doubled down.
This is sad and horrible and this brave woman absolutely breaks my heart. Trump is the worst. This administration is the worst. Stories like this just kinda make me lose hope in the democratic process.
This just made me so sad. A young husband and father gone, a young grieving widow, children. I never thought about whether a soldier’s loved ones could see the body. I just assumed the family could, unless maybe something severe as far as injuries. I can’t imagine losing your spouse only to have their body returned from overseas and having no say as to whether you see them one last time or not before being buried.
Kind of reminds me of back when the press weren’t allowed to publish photos of returning deceased soldiers. Like they’re afraid military enrollment will go down if people start to see the reality of what could happen to them. I also think the military has their story of what happened and don’t want people poking holes in their stories. I mean, what if it’s proven he didn’t die the way they say? That’s looks really bad for them, and you’re not allowed to make the military look bad.
iDK, those were just some of the thoughts I had when I heard she wasn’t allowed to see her husbands body. Very sad for this young lady and their children.
Trump can go as well as that whole Republican Congress. Spineless Lindsey Graham was on Meet the Press attacking Fredricka Wilson as well.They all need to be ousted.
It’s so sad that she had to do this interview while her grief must still be so raw. But the way Trump has continued to lie and attack about it, I can see why she felt compelled to do it. She must be especially appalled that Rep. Wilson, who did so much for her husband and his brothers in her mentoring program and supported her and her family during this miserable time, was being insulted and lied about by both Trump and Kelly.
All Trump had to do was sincerely apologize for the effect his call had, and just say that he didn’t intend to make her feel bad but used the wrong words. That’s all. Nobody thinks he deliberately called to make her feel disrespected. He was clumsy as usual and just needed to simply apologize, as any of us would do if we inadvertently caused pain for someone else. Heck, I apologize to the cats and even grovel a bit when I step on a tail or foot. (Cats especially appreciate groveling.)
But instead, Trump kept lying and and sent out his attack general to make it worse. He still doesn’t understand that it’s not all about him.
Obviously Kelly isn’t giving Trump good advice about such things, since he was clueless enough to think telling a civilian widow that her husband knew what he signed up for would comfort her. It comforted him when he lost his son, but he’s a career military man and it was said to him by a good friend and not by a stranger. Many vets have spoken up to say that it was ridiculous for Trump to think that would definitely be comforting, you say that to other military but not to grieving widows or parents. They tell you to act differently when training people to deliver such bad news to families. Kelly should know that but obviously doesn’t. And his outright lies about Rep. Wilson are simply reprehensible. He needs to apologize for that himself.
When you make a mistake like Trump did on the call, you just apologize and take steps to make sure it never happens again. For starters, take the phone away from Trump. He doesn’t have the skills or sensitivity for such a job. Just have him sign letters carefully drafted by someone else.
Dump refused the training incoming Presidents normally receive on how to handle these calls. Deplorable on all sorts of levels.
My heart goes out to her and her beautiful family. We will never forget the name of your husband, Sergeant La David Johnson.
I am at the point where I wish we could zoom in and magnify the good and bravery in people instead of focusing on the orange jackass currently occupying the White House.
I am not sure what is worse actually, Trump or the fact that the military completly ignores the questions what exactly happened when Sgt. Johnson died – it is not that he was a member of super secret special forces troop, so that everything is top secret. It leaves a very very bad taste and the pregant widow of a fallen soldier who has to take care of small children shouldn’t have to deal with something like that. She could have miscarried due to the shock alone. And on top of that the President insulted and mistreated her.
I would have never taken the call.
*click Decline
Unhinged, Orange Hitler personifies: “It can’t any worse…until it does.” A fresh hell every damn day. Maniac.
This continues to divert attention from the shit show. This is to cover up the huge blunder that allowed this to happen.
And she asked for a picture of his hands, arms, feet, anything so that she would know it was him. How sad.
I believe that what was recovered is probably worse than we can imagine. My heart hurts for her and her children.
And that is just it, how can the freaking govt say no you can’t see the body. That is some awful X-FILES stuff. I just can’t get over it. Advise ma’am you don’t want to see him like this, but to just say no you can’t? Just wrong all the way around.
Trump isn’t good enough a person to even wash her feet. I would be on my knees in her presence, begging to do anything she needed. I am so thankful that she is strong, doesn’t appear hateful, and is so, so proud of who her husband was. Bless her.
My heart just breaks for this woman and the whole family. I do not know if I, as a widow, would have the strength to give this interview. I suppose her strength is drawn from needing to know what happened. I find the combination of receiving no information about his death and her not being allowed to see her husband’s body to be very chilling. She has more grace in her pinky toe than he has in his entire pig body.
I would demand to be allowed to personally procure and deliver a DNA test to a company. The government is just that shady.
I hope they don’t stop until they get the answers they deserve. Military conspiracy theories have a way of sticking around. Let’s hope.
What is going on Bob Mueller?? Please please say he is close to being impeached soon….
I’m a 40 year old white woman and think Trump is the biggest buffoon.
Of course Donny two scoops managed to make a controversy out of an American soldier dying and call his grieving widow and family out to be a liar- because they are black and he is white. But John Kelly!?! He was a military man- he should at least have the decency to offer his condolences and tell his boss to stfu, for once. I’m sure the threat of a punch in the face from Kelly would shut up coward, draft dodger, Donny, real quick.
And on Facebook, a deplorable is calling for Rep. Wilson to be lynched. How is this not against their terms of service?
Omg. Maybe how they type it? I’ve seen bad words get through it there’s for instance, a period between the letters.
I am surprised Kelly has lasted this long. I thought he would’ve bailed by now. He’s rolling around in the mud with the dotard. How low can he go? He must hate himself for standing up for trump. What pathetic losers.
Well, the reason trump is in office is because many of you didn’t show up and vote.
There you go.
You didn’t.
You failed.
To this day, my husband and I often say to each other, “I can’t believe Trump is the president.”
As for Mrs. Johnson, I feel her pain.
I sometimes had to “visit” a new widow and tell her that her husband had passed for whatever reason; most often, a ‘plane crash and I don’t know the reason they wouldn’t let her see his hand but maybe it wasn’t see-able at the time.
Let me tell y’all, I had a lot of additional duties in my 22 years in.
One was Search and Recovery.
Not Search and Rescue, that’s men only but women go in support.
Search and Recovery is just what it sounds like except you are only required to recover 15% of the person’s body weight and even that can be hard to get.
Airplanes burn hot and often crash in remote areas and you have to get there before the wildlife does.
We once were only able to recover a wedding ring and finger, a rib cage, and some stuff in the helmet.
I’m not standing up for the Gov’t or Trump or Dems or anyone.
I’m just telling you what I know.
I believe every word she said. Like she said, why would she make it up? She already has enough on her plate why would she purposely add more stress to her life.
I wish her and the children nothing but the best moving forward.
Miserable that she is trying to profit from the death of her husband. That go fund me page went up quickly. Education for her children, probably not, more a better weave and braces.