Van Jones: Trump ‘became president’ in moment honoring Navy SEAL widow
"He became President of the United States in that moment. Period." @VanJones68 on Trump honoring a Navy SEAL's widow https://t.co/NrIBVZvgRT
— CNN (@CNN) March 1, 2017
Van Jones praised President Trump for honoring the widow of a Navy SEAL killed during a raid in Yemen, saying “he became president of the United States in that moment, period.”
“There are a lot of people who have a lot of reason to be frustrated with him, to be fearful of him, to be mad of him, but that was one of the most extraordinary moments you have ever seen in American politics, period,” Jones said on CNN.
Jones, a liberal commentator who frequently criticizes Trump, said the president did something “extraordinary.”
{mosads}”And for people who had been hoping he would become unifying, hoping that he might find someway to become presidential, they should be happy with that moment,” Jones said.
“For people who have been hoping that maybe he would remain a divisive cartoon, which he often finds a way to do, they should be a little bit worried tonight. Because that thing you just saw him do, if he finds a way to do that over and over again, he’s going to be there for eight years.”
Jones noted that Trump made a lot of statements during his speech that are “counterfactual” and that he opposes.
“But he did something tonight that you cannot take away from,” he said. “He became president of the United States.”
During his address Tuesday night to Congress, Trump said the nation will never forget the sacrifice of Navy SEAL Chief Petty Officer William “Ryan” Owens.
“Ryan’s legacy is etched into eternity,” Trump said, to another standing ovation during which Carryn Owens, the widow of the SEAL, also stood to applaud.
The applause break was one of the longest and most bipartisan of the night, and prompted Trump to ad-lib: “Ryan is looking down right now, and he’s very happy because I think he just broke a record.”
Trump then got back to his script: “For as the Bible teaches us, there is no greater act of love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
“Ryan laid down his life for his friends, for his country, and for our freedom — we will never forget him.”
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