In response to a question about President Trump’s tweets critics have accused as racist, White House counselor Kellyanne Conway asked a reporter about his heritage.
The president sparked controversy Sunday by saying the four congresswomen should all go back to their “broken and crime infested places from which they came.” Three of the representatives were born in the U.S., and Ms. Omar, who was born in Somalia, has been a naturalized citizen since she was a teenager.
During a press gaggle on the White House lawn, reporter Andrew Feinberg asked: “If the president was not telling the four congresswomen to return to their supposed countries of origin, which countries was he referring to?”
“What’s your ethnicity?” Mrs. Conway asked.
“How is that relevant?” Mr. Feinberg replied.
“I’m asking you a question,” she retorted, which Mr. Feinberg said his personal heritage was “not relevant” to the question.
“It is because you’re asking about — he said originally, originally from, and you know everything he has said since,” she said.
When Mr. Feinberg pressed further, Ms. Conway pivoted the question toward immigration and the president being “sick and tired of America being last.”
In this same gaggle, Mrs. Conway blasted the four congresswoman of color — now known as the “squad” — for voting against a House bill to fund migrant detention facilities, saying they represent a “very dark element in the country.”
• Bailey Vogt can be reached at bvogt@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.