Response to Trump’s racist post implies there’s more to come

When Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) responded to Donald Trump posting an image that depicted former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama as apes, I found myself feeling amused.

“Praying it was fake because it’s the most racist thing I’ve seen out of this White House,” said Scott, the only Black Republican senator. “The president should remove it.”

Surely, Scott hadn’t fooled himself into thinking the post was fake. Certainly, he knew this was not and will not be the most racist thing he’s seen out of this White House.

Trump has been dabbling in this kind of run-of-the-mill racism since he’s been in the public eye and Scott’s words reveal his awareness of that fact.

He didn’t merely call Trump’s post racist, he called it the most racist thing to come out of this White House. The implication is that there have been other racist things to which this thing can be compared.

The whole conflict that Trump has with Obama is the equivalent of a playground bully yelling nonsense when he or she realizes they have no witty retort to whatever insult has been thrown at them.

In this case, the insult to Trump is the Obamas’ refinement and earned accolades that run counter to Trump’s vision of white supremacy. He has no comeback, no substantive evidence to reduce their stature, so he resorts to petty stereotypes and lies to make himself feel better.

Deriding people of color, women, immigrants, people with different abilities, members of the LGBTQ+ community or any of the other Americans that Trump has insulted over the past several decades, is merely a reflection of his deep insecurity.

If Scott holds any sway, and maybe he does since Trump did yield to requests from Scott and his Republican allies to take the post down, he should continue focusing his efforts on exposing the cozy corners of the White House where racism takes up residence.

Presidents have engaged in casual and systemic racism since the office was established. Some of them have kept their beliefs under wraps. Some have allowed their personal beliefs to impact policy, others have managed to compartmentalize those beliefs while creating policies that are in the best interests of all American people.

We can excuse racist behavior or policies by suggesting these men are just a product of their times, but the truth is, when you hold the office of president you aren’t just a sheep following the herd, you set the tone for the country.

Trump has continued to show us his low standards.

It’s disturbing the number of people who claim ignorance at what it means to associate Black people with apes. Maybe they really don’t know the history of that ugly insult but anyone who cares to understand can use the internet to dig a little deeper. Hurry before Trump’s erasure of the seamiest parts of American history is complete.

If Scott wants to find something more racist than this in the White House, he too can dig a little deeper.

I encourage him to shift through the dust of the Minority Business Development Agency that he spent years championing before Trump completely wiped it out in October. Scott didn’t utter a peep then, but now he’s up in arms. Something doesn’t compute.

On some level, Scott must know the emperor has no clothes. He knows the Wizard of D.C. is hiding behind a velvet curtain, rapidly pulling levers, a little man with a big voice creating the illusion of power.

Scott stayed silent on a thing that mattered, economic stability and equity for minority business owners, and spoke up on something that mattered less, a centuries old stereotype lobbed at a former president and first lady.