That Time Trump Used Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to Defend Paula Deen Over N-Word Controversy
Vice President Mike Pence is coming under criticism for comparing Donald Trump with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during the slain civil rights icon’s holiday weekend, but he certainly doesn’t have a monopoly on misusing Dr. King’s legacy. Trump himself once used Dr. King’s name to deflect attention from Paula Deen‘s use of the n-word.
In 2013, then-celebrity chef Deen saw her career crumble after she admitted, in a legal deposition, to using the n-word. Deen had been a judge for Trump’s Miss USA pageant, which may explain why Trump jumped to defend her. Or maybe it was something else.
When the scandal broke in June of 2013, Trump’s first instinct was to give Deen “credit fot admitting her mistake”:
Paula Deen made a big mistake in using a forbidden word but must be given some credit fot admitting her mistake. She will be back!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 26, 2013
Trump also had some advice for Deen in the wake of the scandal, namely that she should “stop apologizing”:
“@ctobin22: @realDonaldTrump any advise for battered Paula dean? Her ship has been sinking ..” She must get back to work & stop apologizing!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 5, 2013
But Trump also tried to deflect blame from Deen by helpfully pointing out that black people sometimes use the n-word, as he did in these tweets quoting other Twitter users:
“@EDM___HEAD: @realDonaldTrump @EdandBev lyin ass nigga” Why does Paula D get destroyed and you can use the “N” word so freely, asshole?
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 1, 2013
“@dentstwitt: @EDM___HEAD @realDonaldTrump @EdandBev My question is did MLK Jr. use the ‘N’ word? No, only Paula Dean used it!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 1, 2013
Dr. King’s use of the word was in a decidedly different context than Deen’s.
A few months later, Trump appeared on Fox & Friends to complain that Charlie Rangel didn’t get in trouble for using the word “cracker,” but Paula Deen was “absolutely crucified” for saying the n-word.
“If you are a Republican, you make a statement like that, it’s over, I mean you are finished,” Trump said, adding “It’s a very rough double standard. Paula Deen was absolutely crucified, what they did with her, I don’t know what even happened to her. I see everybody dropped her, she has really got some problems. It’s amazing.”
Tucker Carlson (of course) replied by suggesting that then-President Barack Obama be “forced” to weigh in on Rangel’s comments, to which Trump replied “Obama will take a pass.”
Watch the clip above, via Fox News.
[featured photo via Getty Images]
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