‘Is Donald Trump Sent by God?’ Joy Reid, Republican Guest Get in Heated Clash Over Authoritarianism
MSNBC’s Joy Reid had a rocky moment on her show when a guest panelist rejected the idea that Donald Trump is an authoritarian, all while saying the president was sent by God to wield the power he possesses.
Tracey Winbush, president of the Ohio Black Republican Association, joined Reid on Sunday for a panel conversation about how Trump’s presidency reflects the qualities of authoritarian regimes. Reid brought up “the normalization of violent rhetoric” that has happened under Trump, so she asked Winbush “how do you explain this in your party?”
Winbush threw out the premise by saying “Everything you said about the president and authoritarianism, none of that means anything because you’re not understanding leadership.”
“The president is the leader of the free world and he has to make decisions and we need to respect that,” she continued. “Journalists don’t want to cover the truth, they don’t want to cover the facts. They never have. They have never told the truth and/or the facts about Trump.”
Reid interjected to say Winbush’s media-bashing was “not true,” to which, Winbush retorted “but they don’t [cover the facts].” Reid then asked why Trump constantly antagonizes America’s allies with NATO and the EU while trying to befriend countries like Russia, North Korea and Turkey.
“Because not all of your friends are truly your friends at that time because even the enemy of my enemy is my friend,” Winbush answered. “We also need to understand that you don’t know everything, and he can’t tell you everything that is going on.”
“So you’re saying that Donald Trump needs to lead in secret because he knows more than we do, so we just need to trust that his leadership decisions are correct,” Reid responded. The conversation eventually reached a near-meltdown when Reid said Winbush was speaking in “talking points,” and “you’re not educating anybody by giving talking points. I’ve been hearing these same talking points since Reagan.”
“You don’t give talking points! You guys give opinions and not facts!” Winbush objected. She also made a number of interjections as Reid’s other panelists got their say.
At one point later in the discussion, Jennifer Rubin called Republicans an “authoritarian party” full of “cultists” who “invest all hope, all faith, all protection in Donald Trump.” This led to Reid asking Winbush “is Donald Trump sent by God?”
“All power is elevated by God,” Winbush answered. “If he’s in power, he was sent there by God. I believe Donald Trump is in office because God allowed him to be there to give America a reprieve so that they can reset and get back to normal.”
“Do you believe he is king?” Reid followed up
“I think we all are if you’re in Christ Jesus,” Winbush answered.
Watch above, via MSNBC.
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