Former President Donald Trump destroyed a reporter’s question trying to link him the town’s history from decades ago during a campaign stop in Howell, Michigan, on Tuesday– and his clever response left the audience roaring.
The exchange occurred after Trump’s speech, which was part of his campaign tour through battleground states. A reporter, referencing criticisms from Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign, asked Trump to respond to attacks regarding his visit to Howell, citing the town’s old historical association with white supremacy.
Trump’s response was brief but pointed.
“Who was here in 2021?” he asked.
When the reporter answered “Joe Biden,” Trump simply laughed and replied, “Thank you.”
Take a look at the viral moment —
HOLY SHLIT
A reporter just asked Trump why he came to a town "linked to white supremacy"
Wait for his response 🔥💀🔥 pic.twitter.com/PZn8qWM9Aa
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) August 20, 2024
REPORTER: Kamala's campaign attacked you for being in this town because it's associated with white supremacy.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: "Who was here in 2021?
REPORTER: "Joe Biden"
PRESIDENT TRUMP: "Thank you."
🖐️🎤 pic.twitter.com/QZQVDR9XK6
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) August 20, 2024
This moment quickly exploded on social media, with Trump supporters praising it as a clever retort to the mainstream media’s unfair criticism.
The context for this exchange stems from Howell’s historical association with the Ku Klux Klan. The town has long been trying to distance itself from this reputation, which originated from some KKK meetings held at a nearby farm over 50 years ago.
The last major Klan rally in the town was a poorly attended event in 1994, where less than a dozen white supremacists attempted to rally and were met with hundreds of counter-protesters.
Alyssa Bradley, communications director for Harris’s Michigan campaign, had earlier issued a statement criticizing Trump’s visit and accusing him of racism.
“His visit underscores the core choice in this election – between a prosecutor and a criminal, someone who has spent her life making communities safer and someone who encourages violence, and someone who will build a future where all Michiganders can get ahead and someone who wants to take us back to the days of the KKK,” Bradley stated.
However, as Trump’s response highlighted, President Joe Biden had visited Howell in October 2021 to discuss his “Build Back Better” spending plan.
At that time, Biden’s visit was met with protests from Trump supporters, but he did not face any of the same criticism regarding the town’s history.
Trump’s supporters argue that attempting to tie Trump to Howell’s past is yet another example of the unfair mainstream media — and is offensive to the town’s decades-long efforts to move beyond its history.