According to sources close to the situation, Donald Trump is not happy with Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk over recent comments he's made about Black Americans.
A recent NBC News report indicates Trump is putting some distance between his campaign and the conservative activist after he made derogatory comments about Black pilots and Martin Luther King Jr.
At issue was Kirk's comments made last month on what he called “the deification of MLK,” while blaming the civil rights icon for helping to usher in a “proto” version of diversity, equity and inclusion. Later, Kirk blamed corporate DEI programs for making him think twice about the qualifications of black pilots.
Darrell Scott, a pastor from Ohio who was one of Trump's advisers, expressed concerns directly to the former president, four people familiar told NBC News.
Scott said he could “neither confirm nor deny” that the conversation with Trump took place. But he acknowledged that he has heard from people close to Trump who share his view that Kirk's commentary may harm the former president's prospects with Black voters.
“I've got to say, racism is like the word ‘ugly.' I can't always describe it, but I know it when I see it,” Scott said in an interview with NBC News. “That boy's a racist right there.”
Trump who is currently the leading candidate to win the Republican presidential nomination is reportedly making strides with Black voters.
A recent Gallup poll shows that while Democrats still hold a significant advantage over Republicans with Black voters, their 47-point lead is the “smallest Gallup has recorded in its polling, dating back to 1999.” (RELATED: Poll Reveals Significant Dip In Support For Democrats Among 2 Demographics)
“Trump is f**king pissed that Charlie is out causing problems for him in the Black community,” said another person close to Trump who claimed direct knowledge of his thinking.
Donald Trump Jr. pushed back on the narrative his father is frustrated with Kirk, saying that Kirk has “great standing with both my father and the entire Trump campaign” is “nothing more than fiction coming from people jealous of the close relationship Charlie has built with our family.”
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