
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) and Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) attend a House Oversight and Reform Committee holds a hearing on "The Trump Administration's Child Separation Policy: Substantiated Allegations of Mistreatment" on July 12, 2019 in Washington, D.C. (Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images)
#RacistPresident Trends as Pressley, AOC, Tlaib, and Omar Hit Back at Trump's Bigoted Attack
"We are what democracy looks like. And we're not going anywhere. Except back to D.C. to fight for the families you marginalize and vilify everyday."
After President Donald Trump on Sunday directed a series of racist tweets at Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, and Ayanna Pressley, the group of freshman congresswomen known as the "the Squad" rebuked the president for his bigoted remarks and vowed to continue fighting his cruel attacks on immigrants and other vulnerable communities.
"You are stoking white nationalism because you are angry that people like us are serving in Congress and fighting against your hate-filled agenda."
--Rep. Ilhan Omar
"This is what racism looks like," tweeted Pressley, a Massachusetts congresswoman, after Trump said the freshman Democrats should "go back" to the countries "from which they came."
Trump's attack was met with a flood of outrage. By Monday morning, the hashtag #RacistPresident reached the top of Twitter's trending list.
"We are what democracy looks like," said Pressley. "And we're not going anywhere. Except back to D.C. to fight for the families you marginalize and vilify everyday."
Omar, a Minnesota Democrat and the only member of "the Squad" not born in the United States, said Trump is "the worst, most corrupt and inept president we have ever seen."
"You are stoking white nationalism because you are angry that people like us are serving in Congress and fighting against your hate-filled agenda," Omar, a Somali refugee, tweeted in response to the president's attack.
Trump's tweets appeared to echo a segment by Fox News host Tucker Carlson last week, in which he accused Omar of showing "undisguised contempt for the United States" for daring to criticize the nation's systemic inequities.
The president similarly said the progressive congresswomen are "viciously telling the people of the United States, the greatest and most powerful nation on earth, how our government is to be run."
"Why don't they go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came," Trump wrote. "Then come back and show us how it is done."
Tlaib, a Palestinian-American, was the first of the targeted congresswomen to hit back at the president's remarks.
"Want a response to a lawless and complete failure of a president? He is the crisis," Tlaib tweeted. "His dangerous ideology is the crisis. He needs to be impeached."
Ocasio-Cortez followed Tlaib with a series of tweets blasting Trump for relying "on a frightened America for [his] plunder."
"Mr. President, the country I 'come from,' and the country we all swear to, is the United States," wrote the New York Democrat. "But given how you've destroyed our border with inhumane camps, all at a benefit to you and the corp[orations] who profit off them, you are absolutely right about the corruption laid at your feet."
"You are angry because you can't conceive of an America that includes us," Ocasio-Cortez added. "You won't accept a nation that sees healthcare as a right or education as a #1 priority, especially where we're the ones fighting for it. You can't accept that we will call your bluff and offer a positive vision for this country. And that's what makes you seethe."
Urgent. It's never been this bad.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just four days to go in our Spring Campaign, we are not even halfway to our goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
After President Donald Trump on Sunday directed a series of racist tweets at Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, and Ayanna Pressley, the group of freshman congresswomen known as the "the Squad" rebuked the president for his bigoted remarks and vowed to continue fighting his cruel attacks on immigrants and other vulnerable communities.
"You are stoking white nationalism because you are angry that people like us are serving in Congress and fighting against your hate-filled agenda."
--Rep. Ilhan Omar
"This is what racism looks like," tweeted Pressley, a Massachusetts congresswoman, after Trump said the freshman Democrats should "go back" to the countries "from which they came."
Trump's attack was met with a flood of outrage. By Monday morning, the hashtag #RacistPresident reached the top of Twitter's trending list.
"We are what democracy looks like," said Pressley. "And we're not going anywhere. Except back to D.C. to fight for the families you marginalize and vilify everyday."
Omar, a Minnesota Democrat and the only member of "the Squad" not born in the United States, said Trump is "the worst, most corrupt and inept president we have ever seen."
"You are stoking white nationalism because you are angry that people like us are serving in Congress and fighting against your hate-filled agenda," Omar, a Somali refugee, tweeted in response to the president's attack.
Trump's tweets appeared to echo a segment by Fox News host Tucker Carlson last week, in which he accused Omar of showing "undisguised contempt for the United States" for daring to criticize the nation's systemic inequities.
The president similarly said the progressive congresswomen are "viciously telling the people of the United States, the greatest and most powerful nation on earth, how our government is to be run."
"Why don't they go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came," Trump wrote. "Then come back and show us how it is done."
Tlaib, a Palestinian-American, was the first of the targeted congresswomen to hit back at the president's remarks.
"Want a response to a lawless and complete failure of a president? He is the crisis," Tlaib tweeted. "His dangerous ideology is the crisis. He needs to be impeached."
Ocasio-Cortez followed Tlaib with a series of tweets blasting Trump for relying "on a frightened America for [his] plunder."
"Mr. President, the country I 'come from,' and the country we all swear to, is the United States," wrote the New York Democrat. "But given how you've destroyed our border with inhumane camps, all at a benefit to you and the corp[orations] who profit off them, you are absolutely right about the corruption laid at your feet."
"You are angry because you can't conceive of an America that includes us," Ocasio-Cortez added. "You won't accept a nation that sees healthcare as a right or education as a #1 priority, especially where we're the ones fighting for it. You can't accept that we will call your bluff and offer a positive vision for this country. And that's what makes you seethe."
After President Donald Trump on Sunday directed a series of racist tweets at Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, and Ayanna Pressley, the group of freshman congresswomen known as the "the Squad" rebuked the president for his bigoted remarks and vowed to continue fighting his cruel attacks on immigrants and other vulnerable communities.
"You are stoking white nationalism because you are angry that people like us are serving in Congress and fighting against your hate-filled agenda."
--Rep. Ilhan Omar
"This is what racism looks like," tweeted Pressley, a Massachusetts congresswoman, after Trump said the freshman Democrats should "go back" to the countries "from which they came."
Trump's attack was met with a flood of outrage. By Monday morning, the hashtag #RacistPresident reached the top of Twitter's trending list.
"We are what democracy looks like," said Pressley. "And we're not going anywhere. Except back to D.C. to fight for the families you marginalize and vilify everyday."
Omar, a Minnesota Democrat and the only member of "the Squad" not born in the United States, said Trump is "the worst, most corrupt and inept president we have ever seen."
"You are stoking white nationalism because you are angry that people like us are serving in Congress and fighting against your hate-filled agenda," Omar, a Somali refugee, tweeted in response to the president's attack.
Trump's tweets appeared to echo a segment by Fox News host Tucker Carlson last week, in which he accused Omar of showing "undisguised contempt for the United States" for daring to criticize the nation's systemic inequities.
The president similarly said the progressive congresswomen are "viciously telling the people of the United States, the greatest and most powerful nation on earth, how our government is to be run."
"Why don't they go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came," Trump wrote. "Then come back and show us how it is done."
Tlaib, a Palestinian-American, was the first of the targeted congresswomen to hit back at the president's remarks.
"Want a response to a lawless and complete failure of a president? He is the crisis," Tlaib tweeted. "His dangerous ideology is the crisis. He needs to be impeached."
Ocasio-Cortez followed Tlaib with a series of tweets blasting Trump for relying "on a frightened America for [his] plunder."
"Mr. President, the country I 'come from,' and the country we all swear to, is the United States," wrote the New York Democrat. "But given how you've destroyed our border with inhumane camps, all at a benefit to you and the corp[orations] who profit off them, you are absolutely right about the corruption laid at your feet."
"You are angry because you can't conceive of an America that includes us," Ocasio-Cortez added. "You won't accept a nation that sees healthcare as a right or education as a #1 priority, especially where we're the ones fighting for it. You can't accept that we will call your bluff and offer a positive vision for this country. And that's what makes you seethe."

