President Trump claims he deserves credit for creating popularity for Juneteenth after drawing derision for scheduling his political rally in Tulsa, Okla., on the same date.
Juneteenth, which will be celebrated Friday, commemorates the order that the Emancipation Proclamation be enforced in Texas. The date is recognized as a holiday in 47 states and the District of Columbia.
In a wide-ranging interview with the Wall Street Journal, Trump claimed “nobody had ever heard of” the June 19 holiday before the controversy surrounding his rally, which he later moved to Saturday.
“I did something good: I made Juneteenth very famous,” Trump said. “It’s actually an important event, an important time. But nobody had ever heard of it.”
Trump: "I made Juneteenth very famous. It’s actually an important event, an important time. But nobody had ever heard of it."
Black people have been celebrating Juneteenth since 1865, but Trump learned about it last week and now he wants to take credit.https://t.co/IBpyCXM1wt
— Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) June 18, 2020
Trump told the Journal he “polled many people around him, none of whom had heard of Juneteenth.”
But according to the report, the president was informed of the significance by one of his own Secret Service agents, who is black.
During the interview, Trump was also unaware the White House had issued statements commemorating the holiday in each of the years he has been in office. Informed by an aide of those prior statements as he spoke with the Journal, the president expressed surprise.
“Oh really? We put out a statement? The Trump White House put out a statement?” Trump said, according to the newspaper. “OK, OK. Good.”
"You know who had no idea about Juneteenth? Him," says @ChrisCuomo on President Trump's claim that he made the day famous.
"Too many are now painfully aware of his ignorance, and his arrogance, and that is the deadliest, and most dangerous, combination in leadership." pic.twitter.com/Qjv38Jz9nJ
— CNN (@CNN) June 19, 2020
