When Kamala Harris Called Trump 'Unfit for Office' Over His Racist Remarks
Former President Donald Trump’s first presidential term and the ongoing campaign have both been marked by several controversial and racist statements. Although Trump has constantly denied being a racist, several comments and policy suggestions given by him bring out a different picture. Back in 2016, when Trump made one such controversial remark, Kamala Harris launched a scathing attack on Trump. She argued that his behavior and hazardous policy proposals were evidence that he was unfit for the office, as reported by HuffPost.
In 2016, Trump University faced accusations of defrauding its students. The federal judge handling the lawsuits, Gonzalo Curiel, who was born in Indiana to Mexican immigrant parents, was criticized by Trump. Trump said, “He’s a Mexican. We’re building a wall between here and Mexico. The answer is, he is giving us very unfair rulings — rulings that people can’t even believe.” Trump didn’t stop there as he later suggested that a Muslim judge might also be biased against him. Harris, however, criticized his racist remarks during a campaign stop in Santa Barbara.
Harris argued that Trump's remarks show he's unfit for the presidential responsibility of appointing federal judges and Supreme Court justices who truly serve the nation's best interests. She added, "He has just told us the fact that someone is Latino disqualifies him from being a judge. Can that person be president of the United States of America?" Well, this wasn't the only time that the former president has slammed Mexicans. In 2015, Trump said, "When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best. They're not sending you. They're not sending you. They're sending people that have lots of problems, and they're bringing those problems with us."
He continued, "They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists. And some, I assume, are good people." However, he later defended the comments and said, "The Mexican government is forcing their most unwanted people into the United States. They are, in many cases, criminals, drug dealers, rapists, etc," as reported by ABC News. Beyond this, Trump has made other racially charged statements. At one point, he even suggested that laziness is a characteristic of Black people. He said, “I have black guys counting my money. … I hate it. The only guys I want counting my money are short guys that wear yarmulkes all day.”
However, Trump has always denied being a racist. He once said, “Well, you know, when it comes to racism and racists, I am the least racist person there is. And I think most people that know me would tell you that. I am the least racist, I’ve had great relationships. In fact, Randall Pinkett won, on ‘The Apprentice’ a little while ago, a couple of years ago. And Randall’s been outstanding in every way. So I mean, I am the least racist person.” Also, after he faced backlash for his comments regarding Mexican immigrants, he said, “I don’t have a racist bone in my body. The fact that I want a strong border and the fact that I don’t want illegal immigrants pouring into this country, that doesn’t make me a racist, it means I love this country and I want to save this country,” as reported by Politico.
