Republican Sen. Mike Lee went off on an epic rant against Donald Trump Wednesday when one show host asked the Utah lawmaker why he hasn’t endorsed the presumptive GOP nominee.
Newsmax TV anchor Steve Malzberg wanted to know why Lee isn’t “out there trumpeting Trump,” adding that he “doesn’t understand” why he wouldn’t be backing the billionaire businessman. Lee offered a laundry list of reasons.
“Hey look, Steve, I get it. You want me to endorse Trump,” Lee responded. “We can get into that if you want.”
At that, Lee slammed Trump for pushing a conspiracy theory that Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s father, Rafael, was involved in the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and said the candidate’s comments about Muslims are “religiously intolerant.”
“We can get into the fact that he accused my best friend’s father of conspiring to kill JFK,” the senator said. “We can go through the fact that he’s made statements that some have identified correctly as religiously intolerant. We can get into the fact that he’s wildly unpopular in my state, in part because my state consists of people who are members of a religious minority church.”
Lee added that part of the reason some Utahns — many of whom are Mormon — dislike Trump is because, as “a people who were ordered exterminated by the governor of Missouri in 1838,” policy proposals like the real estate mogul’s Muslim ban “make them nervous.”
The only way Lee could move on, he said, is if he “heard the right things” from Trump moving forward.
“I can go on if you like, … but don’t sit here and tell me, Steve, that I have no reason to be concerned about Donald Trump,” Lee told Malzberg.
In response, the Newsmax anchor seemed surprised the issues the senator listed would be reason enough to withhold an endorsement, telling Lee his complaints “dwarf” in comparison to concerns over Hillary Clinton.
“To me, the concerns that you should have about Hillary Clinton would dwarf most if not all, in my view, I can’t speak for you, of what you just said,” Malzberg said. “She’s under FBI investigation, she takes money from countries that kill gays, that treat women like garbage. You know, we know about the email scandal, I mean, the list goes on: the Clinton Foundation, the conflict of interest, I mean, the corruption, the lifelong corruption. It goes on and on and on.”
Malzberg then seemed to suggest Trump’s peddling of conspiracy theories about Cruz’s father pales by comparison, but Lee wasn’t quite ready to let it go.
“Right, right, he said that,” Lee interjected. “He actually said that. He said that without any scintilla, without a scintilla of evidence. Now that concerns me.”
Lee, who “can’t vote for” Clinton, told Malzberg he would like to see “assurances” from Trump that he is going to be a “vigorous defender” of the U.S. Constitution and won’t lead in an “authoritarian” manner.
“I’m sorry, sir, but that is not an unreasonable demand,” he concluded.
#1: Titorite2 To: Willie Green (#0)
Titorite2 posted on 2016-06-30 09:41:46 Reply Private Reply
#2: misterwhite To: Willie Green (#0)
Trump has called for a temporary ban of undocumented Muslim refugees from radical Islamic counties from entering the US. Because radical Islamic terrorists are murdering innocent people in the name of their god.
Yes. Trump is intolerant of any religion that calls for the murdering of innocent men, women, and children in the name of their god.
misterwhite posted on 2016-06-30 09:52:07 Reply Private Reply
#3: Logsplitter To: Willie Green (#0)
Logsplitter posted on 2016-06-30 10:07:19 Reply Private Reply
#4: Roscoe To: misterwhite (#2)
The left won't tolerate Trump's intolerance of intolerance.
Roscoe posted on 2016-06-30 10:08:07 Reply Private Reply
#5: Stoner To: Titorite2 (#1)
Have to agree with that.
Also, I think Mike Lee, like Mark Levin & Glen Beck, are just butt hurt sore losers because their guy Cruz did not make it. I think they are just trying to keep up anti Trump agit prop in the hopes that Cruz will get selected at the convention. I notice these guys all maintain the same rhetoric to convey that they are ideologically pure to the constitution. Yet, Cruz was a supporter of TPP, and supported more H1B visa's.
These guys just need to grow up. If Shitlery does end up winning, these guys will be partially responsible. But you can bet they will be complaining like hell about her.
Stoner posted on 2016-06-30 10:13:19 Reply Private Reply
#6: misterwhite To: Roscoe (#4)
How intolerant of them.
misterwhite posted on 2016-06-30 10:17:33 Reply Private Reply
#7: misterwhite To: Stoner (#5)
Nah. They know they'd get zero coverage from the MSM if they supported Trump.
misterwhite posted on 2016-06-30 10:19:43 Reply Private Reply
#8: Stoner To: Willie Green (#0)
That is another thing that bugs me about this.
OK, we all know Trump has spoken the truth, that the radical Muzzies have caused all the terrorist acts. And, he logically wants to restrict bringing more in to the country. Makes perfect sense.
I don't know about everyone else, but I am sick & tired of all of these people that are supposed to be Americans, and they are defending the muzzies & taking up for them.
If they like the muzzies so much, I hope they will be happy when the muzzies kill their families, and stick a hand grenade up their butts. Those people that are " religiously tolerant, are just beyond stupid!
Stoner posted on 2016-06-30 10:48:53 Reply Private Reply
#9: Willie Green To: Logsplitter (#3)
Willie Green posted on 2016-06-30 10:59:49 Reply Private Reply
#10: Hondo68 To: Willie Green, *The Two Parties ARE the Same* (#9)
The best liar wins!
Hondo68 posted on 2016-06-30 11:57:39 Reply Private Reply
#11: BobCeleste To: Stoner (#5)
He has shown himself to be just one more member of the ruling political elite.
This I got from my conversation with the underling to the under-answer of the phones.
BobCeleste posted on 2016-06-30 12:02:07 Reply Private Reply
#12: ConservingFreedom To: Willie Green (#9)
ConservingFreedom posted on 2016-06-30 13:00:51 Reply Private Reply
#13: ConservingFreedom To: Willie Green (#0)
I listened - anybody who thinks this was "an epic rant" has led a very sheltered life.
ConservingFreedom posted on 2016-06-30 13:12:23 Reply Private Reply
#14: jeremiad To: Stoner (#5)
jeremiad posted on 2016-06-30 15:27:56 Reply Private Reply
#15: Stoner To: jeremiad (#14)
Further more, I believe they are FOS in that they are defending muzzies. If they feel so inclined to attack Trump & defend muzzies, then I do not want to hear one word from them if/when a muzzie kills any of their families, or rams a hand grenade up their butts!
Stoner posted on 2016-06-30 15:41:42 Reply Private Reply
#16: jeremiad To: Stoner (#15)
jeremiad posted on 2016-06-30 19:55:58 Reply Private Reply
#17: Stoner To: jeremiad (#16)
Yeah, it is odd. Could be a bit of both.
Stoner posted on 2016-07-01 17:07:15 Reply Private Reply
#18: BorisY To: Willie butt licking Green, yukon, roscoe, gatlin, harrowup, all alert canaries, canary island (#0)
to
dnc
100%
crazy
leftist
weirdos
you
can't
say
anything
bad
enough
about
them
Donald
Trump
is
100%
right
on
normal
Make
America
right
great
again
love
boris
BorisY posted on 2016-07-01 17:21:23 Reply Private Reply