CNN’s Anderson Cooper said Monday that a tweet from President Trump earlier in the day aimed at Bubba Wallace, the sole Black driver in NASCAR’s top series, was “racist, just plain and simple.”
In the tweet, the president accused Wallace of perpetrating a “hoax” over a noose found in his garage at Talladega Speedway last month and said Wallace should apologize. He added that NASCAR’s decision to ban the Confederate flag from its properties contributed to the “lowest ratings EVER!”
Cooper on his program Monday evening accused the president of “pointing to the only Black guy in a room full of white guys” and “making up things he definitely didn’t do” in order to help his sinking poll numbers.
Cooper also opened his program by accusing the president of trying to divert people’s attention from the coronavirus crisis by “smearing a Black NASCAR driver, supporting the Confederate flag and statues of traitors, which he claims as part of our proud heritage.”
CNN and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
FBI investigators found that the noose discovered in Wallace’s garage had been there for months and was not targeted at Wallace personally. But NASCAR released a photo of the noose, which was tied at the end of a garage door pull, and stressed “the noose was real.” Officials said no other rope pulls at the track were tied in a similar fashion.
Wallace earlier Monday responded to Trump’s tweet with a statement of his own released on Twitter, calling on fans to make love “come naturally” in the face of hate.
“Love should come naturally to as people are TAUGHT to hate. Even when it’s hate from the POTUS.. Love wins,” he said.