Mitch McConnell Hides Under His Shell From Mean Words Like 'Racism' And 'Trump'

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will not have you accusing Donald Trump of racism. Or at least he'll pretend he can't hear you asking about Trump's racism, because he's got an election to win, no matter how big a racist his party's presidential candidate is. And lo, McConnell did go unto NBC's Meet the Press, and thrice did he deny Donald Trump's racism.

We know, dear Wonkers, that you often won't watch the videos here, because they show terrible people saying terrible things. But there's a beautiful Abbott and Costello comedic timing in Mitch McConnell's refusal to actually acknowledge the racism behind Donald Trump's attacks on Gonzalo Curiel, the federal judge in one of the three fraud lawsuits against Trump University. It's almost mesmerizing, and the transcript alone isn't sufficient to appreciate what a transparently slimy old reptile Yertle is here. (Yes, we know reptiles aren't slimy -- but in McConnell's case, it's all the scum clinging to him.) Watch, cringe, and laugh:

Chuck Todd: You know what he has said about this federal judge that's overseeing the Trump University lawsuit. He has essentially said he cannot be impartial because he's Hispanic. Is that not a racist statement?

Mitch McConnell: I couldn't disagree more with a statement like that.

Todd: Is it a racist statement?

McConnell: I couldn't disagree more with what he had to say.

Todd: Okay. But do you think it's a racist statement to say?

McConnell: I don't agree with what he had to say. This is a man[Curiel, not Trump. Jesus, Mitch] who was born in Indiana. All of us came here from somewhere else. Almost all Americans are either near term immigrants, like my wife, who came here at age eight, not speaking a word of English, or the rest of us whose ancestors were risk takers, and who got up from wherever they were and came here and made this country great. That's an important part of what makes America work.

And racism's on second.

Todd then went on to cite a June 4 post by Erick Erickson, who has the backbone to call Trump a racist (and is otherwise still a rightwing doodyhead), in which Erickson condemned Trump's assertion* that no "Mexican" could possibly be unbiased while presiding over a lawsuit against Trump:

Todd: I want to read you something that Erick Erickson, a conservative commentator, wrote for The Resurgent. He wrote it yesterday. "The attacks are racist. To claim someone is unable to objectively and professionally perform his job because of his race is racism. And damn the GOP for its unwillingness to speak up on this. ... [T]he party of Lincoln intends to circle the wagons around a racist. Damn them for that." What do you say to Mr. Erickson?

McConnell: I think the party of Lincoln wants to win the White House. And the right-of-center world needs to respect the fact that the primary voters have spoken.

That's some party of Lincoln, that party of Lincoln that's embracing the racist dude. Although the party of Lincoln couldn't disagree more with the racist things the racist dude is saying.

Quick, somebody mention that Robert Byrd was once in the KKK. That ought to even things out.

* To his credit, Erickson also called out media outlets who called Trump's comments "racially tinged" or "racially charged." Nope, he said: "This was racism plain and simple."

[ ThinkProgress / NBC News / The Resurgent ]