David Duke Expresses Gratitude, Support For Anti-Semitic Trump Tweet
by Sam Reisman | 4:11 pm, July 5th, 2016
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by Sam Reisman | 4:11 pm, July 5th, 2016
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trump-dukeEx-KKK Grand Wizard David Duke expressed his gratitude and support for Donald Trump‘s tweet that used a red Star of David to accuse Hillary Clinton of corruption.
In one of a series of tweets published over the weekend, Duke said it was “ok” that Trump had replaced the image with the Star of David with one of a red circle, saying that “we welcome the hidden hand exposing itself.”
He also thanked Trump for “slipping some ‘Red Pills’ to the American people!” (“Red pill,” a term borrowed from The Matrix, typically refers to the men’s rights movement, but can be more broadly applied to any instance of one becoming aware of the secret nature of the world.)
The image Trump tweeted out appeared originaly on a message thread that trafficked in neo-Nazi and white supremacist memes (as Mic originally reported). Trump on Monday blamed the media for reporting on the tweet, affirming that the six-sided star was a sheriff’s star — a claim he and his supporters have stood by.
Duke has been one of Trump’s troublesome supporters, and the candidate invited controversy back in February when he did not immediately disavow the former KKK leader’s endorsement. (He eventually did.) Duke subsequently took credit for a boost in Trump’s poll numbers.
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TWEETS
avid Duke @DrDavidDukeSeems something changed? That's ok, we welcome the hidden hand exposing itself.#MakeAmericaGreatAgain#AmericaFirst
5:35 PM - 2 Jul 2016
David Duke @DrDavidDuke
Nice to see Mr. Trump slipping some 'Red Pills' to the American people! #MakeAmericaGreatAgain #AmericaFirst https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/749261175968436224 …
3:38 PM - 2 Jul 2016
24 24 Retweets
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Of course, while the Trump campaign continued to remain silent on the issue, news outlets discovered the image had been posted on an anti-Semitic, white supremacist message board 10 days earlier.
It was not until Monday afternoon that the Trump campaign finally issued a statement on the controversy.
“These false attacks by Hillary Clinton trying to link the Star of David with a basic star, often used by sheriffs who deal with criminals and criminal behavior, showing an inscription that says ‘Crooked Hillary is the most corrupt candidate ever’ with anti-Semitism is ridiculous,” Trump said in a statement, ignoring the origins of the image.
Later Monday evening, Trump’s social media director Dan Scavino attempted to further defend the tweet.
“The social media graphic used this weekend was not created by the campaign nor was it sourced from an anti-Semitic site,” Scavino said in a statement separate from Trump’s. “It was lifted from an anti-Hillary Twitter user where countless images appear.”
“The sheriff’s badge — which is available under Microsoft’s ‘shapes’ — fit with the theme of corrupt Hillary and that is why I selected it,” Scavino added, before blaming the “dishonest media” for labeling the image a Star of David.
Duke also tweeted two graphics of Clinton that included the Star of David.
ZIO-whore Hillary & Her Seven Sleazy Zionist Top Campaign Donorshttps://t.co/DJ2ptHJKag#AmericaFirst #TheWall pic.twitter.com/SIclbsm6fX
Special:
— David Duke (@DrDavidDuke) July 5, 2016
