Martin Luther King III, the son of revered civil rights leader Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., met with President-Elect Donald Trump on Monday (Jan. 16). King said that the meeting was “constructive,” but failed to fully address Trump’s egregious comments that Rep. John Lewis was an ineffective politician representing a struggling Georgia district.
The men met at Trump Tower in New York amid a media throng, this after Trump canceled a planned trip to the National African American Museum in Washington. Over the weekend, Trump became the target of criticism after he attacked the record and historical contributions of Congressman Lewis, who marched alongside King’s father during the heights of the Civil Rights Movement. When asked about Trump’s barbs, King politely glossed over the matter and ducked the hard answer.
The Hill reports:
“Well, first of all I think that in the heat of emotion a lot of things get said on both sides. And I think that at some point — I am, as John Lewis and many others, a bridge builder,” King told reporters in the lobby of Trump Tower.
“The goal is to bring America together and Americans. We are a great nation but we must become a greater nation. And what my father represented, my mother represented through her life, what I hope that I am trying to do is always bring people together.”
Trump criticized Lewis over the weekend, calling the congressman “all talk” and “no action” after Lewis said he did not view Trump as a “legitimate president.”
Without a doubt, MLK III is well within his rights to hold discussions with whoever he pleases. And further, if he thinks working with Trump is worth the effort, that’s nothing anyone should criticize.
However, Trump said what he said about Lewis, a person who has done more for Americans than the business mogul could ever dream of. It’s telling that the son of a man who risked it all and paid the ultimate price would willingly stand next to a publicly recognized bigot and blowhard who couldn’t walk even half of a city block in Congressman Lewis’ shoes.
To MLK III’s credit, he did shoot down Trump saying Lewis wasn’t about that life. The record shows that Lewis was and still is very much front and center in fighting for change.
Trump’s childish antics wouldn’t play well with the elder King so it’s pretty damning that the son failed to call Trump to the floor for talking out of line on one of the most iconic figures in modern times.
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Photo: Screen Cap
