Residents of Baltimore are working to showcase the best that their hometown has to offer, just days after President Trump described the city as a "a disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess."
Trump's epithets came amid a Twitter tirade against Baltimore's congressional Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), who chairs the House Oversight Committee and has been a staunch critic of the president.
"His district is considered the Worst in the USA," Trump added. "If he spent more time in Baltimore, maybe he could help clean up this very dangerous & filthy place." The president also took a hit at residents of Baltimore.
Cummings dismissed the president's critique, saying in a tweet "each morning, I wake up, and I go and fight for my neighbors."
The city, moreover, has soundly rejected the president's characterization.
"People are furious, of course. People know that Baltimore is not how [Trump] describes it," Greg Tucker, the co-founder of the forthcoming website We Are Baltimore told Cheddar. "Indeed Baltimore has challenges. Indeed Baltimore has suffered years of underinvestment in critical neighborhoods… yet too often Baltimore is characterized solely by our worst elements."
"We Are Baltimore," which was in the works before Trump's tweets, will aggregate stories from residents and thriving local businesses to counter the negative narrative of the city.
It will "provide a definitive platform where we can aggregate and amplify the many positives, the many assets of Baltimore," Tucker added.
In a statement, Baltimore's Mayor Bernard C. Jack Young also slammed the president for using "hurtful and dangerous" rhetoric to "denigrate a vibrant American City."
Trump is "a disappointment to the people of Baltimore, our country, and to the world," Young added.
The president's invocation of rodents and infestations to describe a city that is more than 60 percent black was widely rebuked as using racist terms that have been historically used to demonize minorities.
Civil rights icon Reverend Al Sharpton said from a press conference in Baltimore on Monday that Trump had attacked the city in "the most bigoted and racist way."
"He has a particular venom for blacks and people of color," Sharpton said. "He doesn't refer to any of his other opponents or critics as infested."
Trump said "Democrats always play the Race Card" and criticized Sharpton as a "a con man, a troublemaker" on Twitter ahead of the press conference. He also doubled down early Monday morning on his critique of Cummings, who has represented Maryland's 7th congressional district since 1996. "25 years of all talk, no action!" Trump tweeted.
Several 2020 Democratic presidential candidates including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) — whose campaign is headquartered in Baltimore — condemned Trump's remarks.
Yet the most scathing rebuke came from the Baltimore Sun's editorial board, which wrote "Better to have some vermin living in your neighborhood than to be one."
Trending on Twitter over the weekend was #TrumpIsARat.
In a statement to Cheddar, Twitter confirmed that Trump's tweets do not violate the platform's rules regarding the use of dehumanizing language.
As President Biden's poll numbers fall with Black voters, Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass. 7th District) joined Cheddar to discuss what she feels could help the embattled administration: deliver on policies. Pressley pointed to stalled legislation such as new voting rights laws and Build Back Betters and canceling student loan debt, which would go a long way to improving his standing with Black constituents. "President Biden has the authority and the power to alleviate this burden, which would also help in closing the racial wealth gap, and he can do it by executive action with the stroke of a pen," she said. "And it doesn't require one vote from Congress. So, the Biden administration just needs to deliver to Black America in a tangible and impactful way."
Mayor Ras Baraka of Newark, NJ and Ayana Morris, co-director of the documentary 'Why Is We Americans?,' join Cheddar News to discuss the new documentary highlighting the impact of the Baraka family.
Former New York City mayor and lawyer to Donald Trump Rudy Giuliani made his singing debut on a taping of Fox’s The Masked Singer. However, Ken Jeong and Robin Thicke, two judges on the competition show, reportedly left in protest when Giuliani was unmasked upon being eliminated.
All Hands celebrates Black History Month by highlighting achievements in inclusivity and paying homage to those who have fought for equal rights. Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) joins Cheddar News to discuss voter suppression; Damali Peterman, CEO of Breakthrough ADR, elaborates on the biggest barriers for Black professionals; Andre Perry, senior fellow of Brookings Institution, dives into student loans and the racial wealth divide; and lastly, BET CEO Scott Mills discusses the company's initiatives for 2022.
All month long Cheddar News is celebrating Black History Month.
In our nation’s capital, Black history is being made right now.
cheddar's own Arielle Hixon puts the spotlight on three lawmakers making that happen, Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-IL), Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO), and Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC).
Representative Maxine Waters (D-Calif. 43rd District) joined Cheddar News to talk about the current political climate in America, including efforts to roll back voting rights in multiple states in light of Black History Month. "Why do we have to deal with those who still believe that somehow this country only belongs to the whites of the country and that somehow they have to do everything that they can to undermine our voting and do voters suppression to keep us from being influential and at the table by which to solve problems?" she asked. Waters chided "two Democrats" who she said were stymying attempts to rectify the issue and also spoke on President Biden’s promise to nominate a Black woman to the Supreme Court.
Wall Street saw another volatile day after the Federal Reserve left rates unchanged for now, with plans to raise rates in March at its next meeting in order to ease inflation. Fed Chair Jerome Powell said the Fed has not made decisions on the size of rate increases, adding that the Fed is not trying to get inflation below two-percent. Ken Johnson, CFA and Investment Strategy Analyst explains why Powell thinks that high inflation is a significant threat to the labor market.
