Trump Kind of Apologizes for Retweeting Racist Far-Right British Group: ‘I Know Nothing About Them’
January 26, 2018In a new interview, President Donald Trump said he “would certainly apologize” for retweeting a series of posts by a far-right U.K. group last year — if he’s convinced the group is comprised of “horrible, racist people.”
The 71-year-old president sat down with Piers Morgan at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Friday, for an interview set to air in full on Britain’s ITV on Sunday.
There, Trump addressed a series of controversial tweets he had shared to his Twitter page in November. Posted by the deputy leader of ultra-nationalist political group Britain First, each of the inflammatory clips showed Muslims assaulting people and smashing a statue of the Virgin Mary.
“It was done because I am a big believer in fighting radical Islam terror. This was a depiction of radical Islamic terror,” Trump told Morgan, 52, according to a video clip released by ITV.
He then backed away from claiming any knowledge about the group that issued the tweets.
“Of course I didn’t know that. I know nothing about them and I know nothing about them today, other than I read a little bit,” he said. “I don’t know who they are. I know nothing about them so I wouldn’t be doing that.”
Donald Trump
US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Republican members of the Senate about immigration at the White House in Washington, DC, on January 4, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / JIM WATSON (Photo credit should read JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images)
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Pressed for an apology by Morgan, Trump said: “I don’t want to cause any difficulty for your country. If you’re telling me they’re horrible people, horrible, racist people, I would certainly apologize if you would like me to do that.”
“I am often the least racist person that anybody is going to meet,” the president added, per ITV. “Certainly I wasn’t endorsing anybody.”
Morgan is an old friend of Trump’s, having won the first season of NBC’s The Celebrity Apprentice — which Trump hosted — in 2008. On Twitter, Morgan shared details of their chat, including a behind-the-scenes video of their sit-down.
BREAKING NEWS:
President Trump has publicly apologised for retweeting far-right group Britain First.
Says he didn't know who they were. 'I don't want to be involved with these people. If you're telling me they're horrible racist people. I certainly apologise.' pic.twitter.com/S1apSWC7rR— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) January 26, 2018
I asked President Trump to apologise for retweeting Britain First.
He replied: ‘I would certainly do that if you would like me to do that.’
He knew I did because I’d just asked him to, so self-evidently, he was doing what I asked and apologising.
End.— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) January 26, 2018
Though the retweets prompted a war of words between Trump and Prime Minister Theresa May, who said the president was “wrong” to have retweeted the group, Trump insisted to Morgan that he has a “very good relationship” with May.
“I support her. I support a lot of what she does and says,” he said.
Trump, who recently cancelled his plan to visit London for the opening of new U.S. Embassy, went on to tell Morgan that he had supporters in the U.K.. “I think a lot of the people in your country like what I stand for,” Trump said. “They respect what I stand for and I do stand for touch borders.”
As for those who don’t? “I don’t care,” he said about his U.K. critics. “It’s just one of those things. I don’t say anything because I don’t care.”
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As news of Trump’s promised apology spread, it was met with a call for a more proper one by local politician Tracy Brabin.
“Hello @POTUS . You’ve just said you’d apologize for sharing far right hatred on social media. As the MP for #batleyandspen, a community who’s MP was murdered by someone holding similar views to those you endorsed, we’d like to hear that apology,” she wrote on Twitter. “Thank you.”