White House Says Confederate Flag Will Not Be Denounced As Donald Trump Moans Over NASCAR's Ban
The White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany denied demands to denounce the Confederate flag during a press briefing on July 6, after Donald Trump expressed sorrow over NASCAR's latest decision to ban it from all events and races. The White House tried to present his message as one supporting the racing sport's fans.
Interestingly, Trump's declaration didn't seem to bear a similar resemblance to the White House's clarifications for it. McEnany's denial to support an official stance on flying the Confederate flag is widely seen as an indication of the president's unceasing attempts to use racist symbols to lure a few white voters as he tries to revive his reelection bid.
On July 6, Trump's spokeswoman denied that the president was making a judgment call about the controversy-plagued flag in his tweet. Noting that she spoke to him that morning, McEnany said the president did not give an opinion one way or the other on the flag.
Trump took to his Twitter handle earlier this week asking the race car driver Bubba Wallace if he apologized to all great NASCAR drivers and officials who helped him, stood by his side, and sacrificed everything for him, claiming that it was just another hoax and pointed out that flag decision has caused lowest ratings ever. During a contentious 22-minute briefing that revolved around this tweet, McEnany insisted the president was just voicing support for NASCAR 's fans.
Without providing any explanation, McEnany said the president intended to say no. The White House Press Secretary said Trump meant that most American people are hardworking, good people and they should not make hasty judgments before the facts come out.
Despite repeated questions about why the president was demanding an apology from Wallace, McEnany remained mum and did not explain the president's tweet. Last month, NASCAR initiated an investigation after a crew member found a noose in Wallace's garage at the Talladega Superspeedway. Wallace is the league's only full-time black driver.
The FBI found that the noose found in Bubba Wallace's garage stall had been there since 2019, meaning Wallace was not a victim of a hate crime. Citing the FBI report, NASCAR revealed that the item was there as a garage door pull rope crafted to look like a noose. Following the investigation, Wallace told CNN that it was a noose, regardless of when it was tied.
Wallace said even if the noose wasn't targeted at him, somebody tied a noose. Wallace addressed the upcoming generation and young children following his footsteps via a tweet, urging them to deal with the hate with love. He said love should be a natural emotion just like hatred comes naturally to some people, adding that even if the hate is from the President of the United States.