Trump Publicly Engages in Racism. Again.

[Content Note: Nativism; racism.]

This is one of many reasons why we don't need a goddamned recording of Donald Trump using a racial slur to know that he is racist:

“You’re not nervous are you?” Trump says, calling a Hispanic-looking immigration official to the podium.

“Speaks perfect English,” Trump says of the agent, who arrested someone for trying to illegally smuggle 78 immigrants into the US. pic.twitter.com/AlZZjRb1CI

— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) August 20, 2018

The immigration official who Trump cited for speaking “perfect English” was US Border Patrol agent Adrian Anzaldua.

— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) August 20, 2018

Here's the video. Trump talking about a border patrol agent: "Come here. You're not nervous, right? Speaks perfect English." (via Fox) pic.twitter.com/pJh1T30PvY

— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) August 20, 2018

Transcript: Adrian, come here, I want to ask you a question. So, how did you— Come here, come here. You're not nervous, are you? [laughter] Speaks perfect English. Come here.

Dear god. That was at an event honoring members of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, known as the CBP — which Trump repeatedly misstated as "CBC" during the event.

One year ago, when we were having the same fucking conversation about whether Donald Trump is really racist, I wrote:

Someone does not live a life careening from housing discrimination against Black applicants, to public musings on eugenics and the superiority of one's own genes, to a crusade against exonerated men of color, to a birther campaign against the nation's first Black president, to a presidential announcement address steeped in racism and nativism, to a campaign slogan that's dogwhistled white supremacy, to anti-Semitic tweets and sloganeering, to an attack on a judge because of his ethnicity, to an entire campaign exploiting racial and xenophobic fears, to a presidential agenda centered around toxic attacks on immigrants and Muslims and demonizing cities with significant Black and/or immigrant populations, to defending Confederate monuments, and everything that has come before and in between, if one is merely obtuse.

Trump's record on race is not one of accidental gaffes. It is one of a lifetime commitment to white supremacy.

So of course he is engaging in nativism during a ceremony to honor agents who are faithfully executing his nativist agenda.

That he is a racist is not a question. He is.

The only question is: What are we going to do about it? Step One is never again giving this man the benefit of the doubt that he is anything but the white supremacist he manifestly is.