Reid rips 'spineless' GOP leaders in blistering statement for not withdrawing endorsements of Trump
AP
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid blasted Republican leaders for failing to revoke their endorsements of Donald Trump after the GOP nominee criticized the pair of Gold Star parents who slammed him at the Democratic National Convention.
“Senator McConnell and Speaker Ryan approvingly spoke at Donald Trump’s convention, endorsed Donald Trump for president and believe he is mentally fit to sit in the Oval Office,” Reid said.
The Nevada Democrat added: “Occasional statements that do nothing to repudiate Donald Trump’s words and actions are spineless. Anything short of revoking their endorsements is cowardice.”
Both Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan released statements Sunday expressing disapproval of Trump’s remarks on the Khan family, but they stopped short of withdrawing their endorsements.
“This shouldn’t be hard,” Reid said. “Donald Trump is a sexist and racist man who insults Gold Star parents, stokes fear of Muslims and sows hatred of Latinos. He should not be president and Republican leaders have a moral responsibility to say so.”
Trump suggested Sunday morning that he could not understand why he was earning scorn for questioning the Khan family.
“I was viciously attacked by Mr. Khan at the Democratic Convention. Am I not allowed to respond?” the Republican nominee for president asked in a tweet.
Khizr and wife Ghazala Khan offered a powerful rebuke to Trump on the final night of the DNC. In an eight-minute speech, delivered by Khizr, the family questioned whether the New York businessman had ever read the US Constitution or sacrificed anything for his country.
Trump hit back on Saturday, suggesting Ghazala was not permitted to speak because of her Muslim religion. The billionaire further argued that he had indeed sacrificed for his country, saying he created jobs.
Trump’s remarks were immediately condemned and the billionaire eventually began walking them back. In a Saturday night statement, he called the Khan’s son a “hero to our country” and tried to shift the issue to “the real problem” which he argued was “the radical Islamic terrorists who killed him.”
Khizr Khan said Sunday that Trump's questions about his wife represent the "height of ignorance."
Ghazala Khan also wrote an op-ed in The Washington Post saying she didn’t speak at the DNC because she finds it too painful to think about her son.
“Without saying a thing, all the world, all America, felt my pain,” she wrote.
NOW WATCH: INSTANT POLL: Americans viewed Clinton's convention speech more favorably than Trump's