BILLINGS- The two Democrats vying to take on U.S. Sen. Steve Daines of Montana next year in the 2020 election reacted Tuesday to a recent tweet from the Republican defending President Trump.
Helena mayor Wilmot Collins, who came to the United State as a refugee from the civil war in Liberia, released a video Tuesday on social media calling on Daines to apologize.
“When I first came to Montana some 25 years ago, some vandals spray-painted on my garage door go back to Africa. Yesterday, Sen. Daines sent a tweet that called into question the loyalty of some black and brown public servants. This kind of behavior is inevitable from vandals in the night and or anonymous online commenters but not from a U.S. senator,” Collins said.
I'm calling on Sen. Daines to apologize for his tweet calling into question the loyalty of four of our Congresswomen. #mtpol #mtsen pic.twitter.com/WTKAMfRsAt
— Wilmot Collins (@CollinsWilmot) July 16, 2019
The controversy began over the weekend, when Trump tweeted that four freshman congresswomen- Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota – should “go back to where they came from.” All are American citizens (three born here), critics of the administration and women of color.
In response, the Housevoted Tuesday to condemn Trump’s tweets, while many Republicans, including Daines, leaped to his defense.
Montanans are sick and tired of listening to anti-American, anti-Semite, radical Democrats trash our country and our ideals. This is America. We’re the greatest country in the world.
I stand with @realdonaldtrump. 🇺🇸
— Steve Daines (@SteveDaines) July 15, 2019
John Mues, who will battle Collins for the Democratic nomination, sent out this tweet saying: “As a veteran I know Senator Daines calling half the country Anti American and Anti Semite made Putin’s Russia and Kim Jong Un’s North Korea, and MBS’s Saudi Arabia’s smile. He’s their type of politician, a divider whose policies weaken America. They won’t be smiling in November 2020.
As a veteran, I know Senator Daines calling half the country "Anti-American" and "Anti-Semite" made Putin's Russia, Kim Jong Un's North Korea, and MBS' Saudi Arabia smile. He's their type of politician, a divider whose policies weaken America. They won't be smiling in Nov. 2020. https://t.co/LCen82N79T
— John Mues (@MuesforMontana) July 15, 2019
Daines got more national attention Tuesday night on Fox News Night, where he said he would address what he calls the “anti-American, anti-Semitic movement plaguing our nation.”
