On Wednesday, former President Donald Trump participated in a question-and-answer session at the National Association of Black Journalists’ annual conference and job fair in Chicago. However, he made racist comments about his Democratic rival in a highly controversial session.
The discussion was moderated by Rachel Scott, ABC News Senior Congressional Correspondent, Harris Faulkner, Fox News Channel Anchor, and Kadia Guba, Semaphore Political Correspondent.
Trump received a lukewarm reception, with light applause and audible boos from the crowd. The event was scheduled to start at noon, but was delayed by about 15 minutes.
Scott opened the discussion by asking Trump, “Why should black voters trust you after you use language like that?”
Trump replied: “I don’t think I’ve ever been asked a question in such a horrible way. On the first question, she didn’t even say, ‘Hello,’ or, ‘How are you?’”
Trump then asked Scott, “Are you with ABC? Because I think they're fake news.”
The next question addressed recent comments by conservatives and Republicans who described Vice President Kamala Harris, the first Black and Asian American woman to hold the position, as a “DEI employee.”
“I’ve known her for a long time, indirectly, not directly, and she’s always been of Indian descent, and she’s just been promoting Indian heritage,” Trump said. “I didn’t know she was black until a few years ago when she came out as black, and now she wants to be known as a black Indian. Or is she black?”
Throughout the hearing, Trump continued to criticize Scott on multiple occasions.
Ahead of the conversation, NABJ partnered with PolitiFact to provide real-time fact checking during the debate.
The decision sparked criticism and backlash from members and leaders of the National Association of Journalists, leading to the co-chair's resignation amid controversy over Trump's participation in the conference.
In a video posted to X, NABJ President Ken Lemon addressed the criticism: “It’s not an endorsement at all. The first thing you read when we put out this statement says it’s not an endorsement. Every year, every presidential election cycle, we invite presidential candidates to attend. And we extend that invitation to anyone who’s a candidate.”
More is coming…
