Donald Trump accused Hillary Clinton of pushing an anti-police narrative at a campaign rally in Wisconsin Tuesday night, in what was perhaps his most forceful attempt yet to appeal to black voters.
The Republican nominee, reading from a TelePrompTer in West Bend, painted his Democratic rival as complicit in the racially charged uprisings like the ones in nearby Milwaukee saw last week after a fatal police shooting.
"Those peddling the narrative of cops as a racist force in our society — a narrative supported with a nod by my opponent — share directly in the responsibility for the unrest in Milwaukee and many other places within our country," Trump said.
"Every time we rush to judgment with false facts and narratives, whether in Ferguson or in Baltimore, and foment further unrest, we do a direct disservice to poor African-American residents who are hurt by the high crime in their community — a big, big, unfair problem."
The speech came as recent polls have shown Trump with as little as 0% support among black voters in key swing states. A report from The New York Times on Monday highlighted the businessman's questionable efforts to court the demographic.
The setting of Tuesday's rally didn't seem to allay the criticism. As many observers pointed out, West Bend is close to 100% white, according to the US Census Bureau — and a world apart from the inner-city violence Trump referenced throughout the speech.
—Shane Goldmacher (@ShaneGoldmacher) August 17, 2016
—Craig Gilbert (@WisVoter) August 17, 2016
—John Bresnahan (@BresPolitico) August 17, 2016
