In the aftermath of President Donald Trump declaring Thursday night on Fox News Channel that he would take action against rioters who are tearing down statues, MSNBC anchors Brian Williams and Chris Jansing both fretted over his words, and did not clarify that his comments were aimed at violent protesters.
One of the guests who appeared on Thursday's The 11th Hour with Brian Williams went so far as to accuse President Trump of "giving the green light to those who want to murder black people."
Setting up a clip of President Trump, Williams recalled: "I want to play for you and, by extension, our audience what Donald Trump said tonight in this Fox News town hall about the protesters. And listen for the 'R' word."
One had to watch the chyron on screen to get any hint that Trump was talking about rioters who had defaced or torn down statues as words on screen mildly recalled that protesters had "taken down" statues. Here's Trump:
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP (from Fox News Channel's Hannity show): I stopped it the other night -- I stopped it a number of times, but you'll see what's happening. And we told them. Every night, we're going to get tougher and tougher. And at some point, there's going to be retribution because there has to be. These people are vandals, but they're agitators, but they're really -- they're terrorists, in a sense.
Williams followed up: "What do you think he means by 'retribution'?"
Not letting on that some protesters have been violent, Keith Mayes of the University of Minnesota African Studies Department responded:
It's not different from what they did in the sixties in terms of criminalizing all forms of black protest -- black protest activity, whether it be sit-ins or black protest speech. They want to, in many ways, end the movement.
He added:
Look what happened in Wilmington, North Carolina, with the police officer basically saying that "we're ready to shoot and kill. We hate these N folks, and we're ready to move on them and deal with them." That's all as a result of Donald Trump and his ability to give the green light to those who want to murder black people, It's as simple as that.
On Friday afternoon, during a discussion of a couple of cases that have recently come under scrutiny in which men died after police actions, MSNBC Live host Jansing generally credited recent "protests" and "demonstrations" for the scrutiny given to those cases:
CHRIS JANSING: So the President -- obviously I don't think any of this would be happening -- I'm not sure any of this would have come out if not for the protests. We have seen millions of people taking to the streets since the death of George Floyd, but the President talked about the demonstrations last night on Fox. I want to play some of what he said.
After playing a similar clip of Trump that Williams had also played in which he called the vandals "terrorists," she then went to her guest, legal analyst Paul Butler, and asked for his response.
The liberal MSNBC contributor complained:
PAUL BUTLER, MSNBC LEGAL ANALYST: The movement for black lives has resulted in the prosecution of many killer cops -- the movement for black lives has been responsible for states right now changing their laws in ways that will make communities safer. People who are protesting -- people in this movement for black lives are reflecting American values, including equal justice under the law much more than the President reflects those values.
By contrast, on Friday's Fox & Friends, similar clips of President Trump were played, and it was made clear that he was responding to rioters who were tearing down and vandalizing statues and engaging in other violence:
STEVE DOOCY: President Trump threatening to take action himself if city leaders in certain localities do not stop protesters from vandalizing -- defacing monuments and attacking police officers nationwide.
Relevant transcripts follow:
MSNBC
MSNBC Live
June 26, 2020
3:39 p.m.
CHRIS JANSING: So the President -- obviously I don't think any of this would be happening -- I'm not sure any of this would have come out if not for the protests. We have seen millions of people taking to the streets since the death of George Floyd, but the President talked about the demonstrations last night on Fox. I want to play some of what he said.
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP (from Fox News Channel's Hannity show): Every night, we're going to get tougher and tougher, and at some point there's going to be retribution because there has to be. These people are vandals, but they're agitators, but they're really -- they're terrorists, in a sense.
JANSING: Talk about the impact of those remarks.
PAUL BUTLER, MSNBC LEGAL ANALYST: The movement for black lives has resulted in the prosecution of many killer cops -- the movement for black lives has been responsible for states right now changing their laws in ways that will make communities safer. People who are protesting -- people in this movement for black lives are reflecting American values, including equal justice under the law much more than the President reflects those values.
(…)
MSNBC
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams
June 25, 2020
11:52 p.m.
BRIAN WILLIAMS: I want to play for you and, by extension, our audience what Donald Trump said tonight in this Fox News town hall about the protesters. And listen for the "R" word.
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP (from Fox News Channel's Hannity show): I stopped it the other night -- I stopped it a number of times, but you'll see what's happening. And we told them. Every night, we're going to get tougher and tougher. And at some point, there's going to be retribution because there has to be. These people are vandals, but they're agitators, but they're really -- they're terrorists, in a sense.
WILLIAMS: What do you think he means by "retribution"?
KEITH MAYES, UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA: "We have to take control of the streets" -- what did he say the other week? "We have to sweep up the streets -- we have to take action." I think these are dog whistles, but, in many ways, we have to take him seriously. He's talking about using the power of the state to crush the movement. It's just as simple as that.
It's not different from what they did in the sixties in terms of criminalizing all forms of black protest -- black protest activity, whether it be sit-ins or black protest speech. They want to, in many ways, end the movement. And I think, Brian, we've heard so much about some of the other cases that are coming forward because of the police bodycams, and things are being revealed.
Look what happened in Wilmington, North Carolina, with the police officer basically saying that "we're ready to shoot and kill. We hate these N folks, and we're ready to move on them and deal with them." That's all as a result of Donald Trump and his ability to give the green light to those who want to murder black people, It's as simple as that.
WILLIAMS: Professor, thank you for having us in, and thank you for coming on the broadcast. We appreciate it.
