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Donald Trump is doubling down on his belief that his recent mugshot will gain him more support in minority communities.
MSNBC reports that at a recent event in Atlanta, Georgia, Trump shared his thoughts on his now-infamous mugshot.
Donald phoned into the event hosted by Black Republicans. “The mug shot is the best ev— it just beat Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra by a lot, by the way… That’s the number one mug shot of all time,” he said to the attendees gathered at a local barber shop.
“It’s really an amazing thing. Since it happened, the support among the Black community and Hispanic community has skyrocketed. It’s been amazing…” Trump boasted over the phone.
MSNBC multimedia producer and political writer Ja’han Jones categorized the 78-year-old’s claim as “bigoted” and “desperate.”
He stated that “it’s easy to assume” Black people would agree with “voting for a criminally indicted hatemonger like Trump just because he’s been arrested” if you “don’t trust Black people’s intelligence to begin with.”
The event, which featured Trump surrogates like former HUD Secretary Ben Carson and GOP Rep. Byron Donalds, was meant to be part of a larger outreach effort to Black voters. However, local Black voters were vastly outnumbered by reporters covering the questionable event.
Trump’s comments echo similar sentiments expressed by conservative media personalities last year. Fox News’ Jesse Watters claimed Trump’s mugshot “turned [him] into a sympathetic character in Black America” and made him a “martyr,” per MSNBC.
Social media users reacted to Trump’s words in The Shade Room’s comment section.
Check out the clip of Trump sharing his comments and social media reactions below.
