'What exactly is a Black job?' Journalist corners Trump at contentious sit-down

31 July 2024

Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday conducted a live interview at a gathering of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) in Chicago, Illinois, and faced tough questions that appear to have caught him off guard.

Prior to the interview, Trump was more than an hour late to his scheduled appearance, which was reportedly due to him learning that fact-checking organization Politifact would be conducting a live fact-check of his remarks. Huffpost reporter Phil Lewis posted to the social media platform Bluesky that there was a "standoff" between Trump and the NABJ about the fact-check, which he ultimately agreed to. But despite that kerfuffle's resolution, the event itself started on a contentious note and only grew more heated.

At the beginning of the interview — which was conducted by ABC's Rachel Scott, Semafor's Kadia Goba and Fox News' Harris Faulkner — Trump went right into a rant about "millions and millions" of undocumented immigrants "that happen to be taking Black jobs."

"What exactly — is — a 'Black job,' sir?" Scott asked.

"A Black job is anybody that has a job," Trump responded, which prompted audible laughter from the room.

The former president was then asked about whether he thought Vice President Kamala Harris — the first female, Black and Asian vice president in U.S. history — was a "DEI hire." When Trump asked the moderators for a definition of "DEI," Scott clarified that the term meant "diversity, equity and inclusion," which resulted in some pushback from Trump. He then talked about how Harris first identified as Indian before then pivoting to calling herself Black (Harris matriculated to Howard University — a historically Black institution — at age 18), which once again prompted a wave of derision from the audience.

"I don't know — is she Indian or is she Black?" Trump said.

"She has always identified as a Black woman," Scott answered.

"I respect either one but she obviously doesn't. Because she was Indian all the way and then all of a sudden she made a turn and she became a Black person," Trump continued, before turning his ire to Scott. "And I think somebody should look into that too when you ask and continue in a very hostile, nasty tone."

"It's a direct question, sir. Do you believe that Vice President Kamala Harris is a 'DEI hire' as some Republicans have said?" Scott pressed.

"I really don't know. I mean I really don't know. Could be, could be, there are some," Trump said.

Watch the clip of the "Black jobs" exchange below, or by clicking this link.

From Your Site Articles