Watch MSNBC's Katy Tur Shut Down A Trump Adviser's Attempt To Downplay Trump's Birtherism
Written by Media Matters Staff
Published
From the September 9 edition of MSNBC's Hardball:
KATY TUR: Let me address what Mr. Kingston was saying it was not an issue of this campaign. Donald Trump may not be making it an issue on the campaign trail on the stump, but I have to tell you, his supporters believe it's an issue. When you ask them about President Obama, not just a handful, not just a few, many of them say that they believe he was born in Kenya. Hold on. I'm telling you, I'm there every day on the campaign trail. I talk to supporters every single day.
JACK KINGSTON (R-GA): But it doesn't show up in any polling. You probably have push questions that say that to people. I mean you can find a fringe element in any crowd.
TUR: Please don't interrupt me, sir. Please don't interrupt me. Let me tell you what Donald Trump supporters tell me on the campaign trail. Let me tell you what Donald Trump supporters tell me on the campaign trail often. They often say they believe he was born in Kenya. They often say they believe he's a Muslim. Some of them go on to say that they believe he's an undercover operative, a Manchurian candidate, if you will that has the interests of a foreign power rather than the interests of the American public. That being said, Donald Trump has not backed away from this.
And, let me finish this, Mr. Kingston. Donald Trump has not backed away from this because he's never backed away from any statement on this campaign trail so far. The only thing we have heard him back away from was to say that he regrets some of the things he said during this campaign season, but he never specifically said what he regretted. We've asked him repeatedly as Chris just showed, I asked him last year, where he stands on the birther movement right now. He was asked as late as last week on his own press plane by the press pool. He said he doesn't want to get into it because he believes it's going to become an issue.
The reality is it's become an issue regardless of it. I spoke to a senior aide last night who said if he was asked about it again, that he would come out and say he does not believe Donald Trump was born overseas, that he believes he was born in Hawaii. The issue is whenever anybody asked him this he refused to back down from it. I understand that you may say, Mr. Kingston, that the polling doesn't agree with me but I'm going to tell you as somebody who has been doing this now for 14 straight months, I think we are going on 15 months now, that is the same conversation I have had with supporter after supporter in city after city in this country. Doesn't matter if we are in the south, in the west, in the east, the north. Every city I have been to, there have been people who have said exactly those words.
Previously:
On MSNBC, Senior Trump Adviser Says “Nothing Wrong” With Trump's Birther Attacks On Obama
Chris Matthews Fact Checks Rudy Giuliani's Lie That Trump Renounced Birtherism Three Years Ago
CNN’s Corey Lewandowski Falsely Claims Trump Accepted Obama’s Long-Form Birth Certificate