US President Donald Trump tweets video with ‘white power’ chant, then deletes it

Image courtesy: Reuters

New Delhi: US President Donald Trump on Sunday deleted a tweet that included a video of dueling protests in Florida's retirement community The Villages, in which senior citizens are seen shouted at each other in obscene language and one man was heard shouting a racist slogan, "White power!", according to a Fox News report. 

Trump had written, "Thank you to the great people of The Villages" in his post, but the White House later reportedly claimed that the President did not hear the phrase.

"President Trump is a big fan of The Villages. He did not hear the one statement made on the video," White House deputy press secretary Judd Deere said in a statement, adding "What he did see was tremendous enthusiasm from his many supporters."

“There’s no question″ that Trump should not have retweeted the video and “he should just take it down,” Senator Tim Scott, R-SC, told CNN’s “State of the Union.” Scott, who is the only Black Republican in the Senate, further quoted by AP report as saying, “I think it’s indefensible.” 

The AP report said that the White House, however, did not respond when asked if President condemned the supporter’s comment.

Joe Biden, who is likely to Democratic presidential nominee, condemned President Trump. “We’re in a battle for the soul of the nation — and the President has picked a side. But make no mistake: it’s a battle we will win,” the former vice president tweeted.

President Trump’s decision to highlight a video featuring a racist slogan comes amid a nationwide protests following the deaths of George Floyd and other Black Americans. 

Floyd, a Black Minneapolis man, died after a white police officer had pressed his knee into his neck for several minutes. Floyd's death led to protests against police brutality and bias in law enforcement have occurred across the United States. 

President Trump had to criticism after saying that there were "very fine people on both sides" of the Charlottesville clash. 

According to Fox News, Trump's critics generally left out that after his reference to "very fine people." The President said, "and I’m not talking about the neo-Nazis and the white nationalists -- because they should be condemned totally," Fox News quoted him as saying.

Notably, many critics of President Trump see him as one of the most powerful proponents of white supremacy in the US history.