Primarily due to sharp questioning by ABC News correspondent Rachel Scott, former President Donald Trump’s appearance before a gathering of Black journalists turned remarkably contentious on Wednesday.
Scott pressed Trump on past statements about Black leaders, his support of Jan. 6, 2021, rioters and diversity hiring — leading the former president to repeatedly complain about how he was treated.
“She was very rude,” the former president said, pointing at Scott.
Trump’s appearance at a meeting of the National Association of Black Journalists was dripping with bad vibes from the start. Some members objected to the Republican candidate for president’s invitation to address the group in the first place, while others said it was their obligation as journalists to question him.
The onstage panel — with Trump questioned by Scott, Fox News Channel’s Harris Faulkner and Semafor’s Kadia Goba — was delayed for more than a half hour due to technical issues.
Scott, ABC News’ senior congressional reporter and a campaign correspondent, has worked at ABC News since 2016, her visibility increasing lately when she anchored the network’s live coverage of President Joe Biden dropping out of the presidential race. In her first question, Scott referred to the controversy over Trump’s appearance, and specifically cited several Trump statement about Black leaders in the past, including his false accusations about former President Barack Obama’s birthplace, and rude remarks to members of Congress, district attorneys and journalists.
“Now that you are asking Black voters to vote for you, why should Black voters trust you after you’ve used language like that?” Scott asked.
Trump immediately went after the questioner.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been asked a question in such a horrible manner, a first question,” he replied. “You don’t even say ‘hello, how are you.’ Are you with ABC? Because I think they’re a fake news network.”
The opening haymaker was directly reminiscent of Trump’s first campaign debate in 2016, when then-Fox News Channel reporter Megyn Kelly brought up things he had said about women and asked, “Does this sound to you like the temperament of a man we should elect as president?”
When Trump began talking Wednesday about what his administration did for Black Americans, Scott attempted to cut him off, saying, “Mr. President, I would love for you to answer the question on your rhetoric and why you believe Black voters can trust you for another term.”
Trump said he was doing so, and made a claim he’s made before, that he was the best President for Black people since Abraham Lincoln.
“Better than President Johnson, who signed the Civil Rights Act”? Scott asked.
Scott then asked whether Trump backed supporters who suggested that his Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, was a DEI hire, leading to a back-and-forth between them over what the phrase — for diversity, equity and inclusion — meant.
“Do you think Vice President Kamala Harris is only on the ticket because she’s a Black person? Scott asked, leading to Trump’s most newsworthy statements of the session, questioning Harris’ racial background.
Scott also asked pointedly about Trump’s support of people convicted for their actions in the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
“One hundred and forty police officers were assaulted that day,” she said. “Their injuries included broken bones, at least one police officer lost an eye, one had cracked ribs, two smashed spinal discs, another had a stroke. Were the people who assaulted these 140 officers … patriots who deserve pardons?”
Trump turned the subject to demonstrations held by those in support of liberal causes.
The panel ended in some degree of confusion. Scott, who was the moderator, cut off an attempt by Faulkner to ask about the Project 2025 blueprint, saying Trump’s time was limited.
After the session, Trump posted on his Truth Social account that “the questions were Rude and Nasty, often in the form of a statement, but we CRUSHED IT!”
A student journalist attending the conference, Kelly Arrington of Savanah State University, said, “I assumed that Trump came just so he could win over more Black voters … But, unfortunately, in this conversation, he did not answer the questions that were given to him.”
The session became a quick topic on social media, with some people praising Scott for asking tough questions, and others who suggested Trump was led into an ambush.
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Associated Press correspondent Matt Brown contributed to this report. David Bauder writes about media for the AP. Follow him at http://twitter.com/dbauder.
David Bauder, The Associated Press
