Trump Didn't Want to Explicitly Condemn White Supremacy

Buried deep in an AP piece by Jonathan Lemire comes this no-shit but nonetheless important reveal:

Loath to appear to be admitting a mistake, Trump was reluctant to adjust his remarks.

The president had indicated to advisers before his initial statement Saturday that he wanted to stress a need for law and order, which he did. He later expressed anger to those close to him about what he perceived as the media's unfair assessment of his remarks, believing he had effectively denounced all forms of bigotry, according to outside advisers and White House officials.

...At the trade event later in the day, he was asked why it took two days for him to offer an explicit denunciation of the hate groups.

"They have been condemned," Trump responded before offering a fresh criticism of some media as "fake news."

He followed with a tweet declaring "the #fakenews will never be satisfied."

While it's undoubtedly true that Trump is always "loath to appear to be admitting a mistake," I'm reasonably certain that, in this case, Trump was even more "reluctant to adjust his remarks" because he doesn't actually want to explicitly condemn white supremacists. The only way he could bring himself to do it was to "denounce all forms of bigotry," which, in his mind, meant also alluding to the "bigotry" of counterprotestors, including and especially Black Lives Matter.

As for Trump tweeting about how the media "will never be satisfied," I predicted that would be the precise message following his second (failed) attempt at condemning white supremacy, and I had a few thoughts on why that was.

This is how generation after generation is taught white supremacy (every bigotry). Effective patterns of oppression are infinitely repeated.

— Melissa McEwan (@Shakestweetz) August 14, 2017

A powerful white supremacist who insufficiently disavows white supremacy will ALWAYS accuse critics of never being satisfied.

— Melissa McEwan (@Shakestweetz) August 14, 2017

Lots of "white moderates" will agree that it's unfair to continue complaining now that Trump has condemned white supremacy.

— Melissa McEwan (@Shakestweetz) August 14, 2017

Trump was ALWAYS going to make himself the victim as the next step, because that's what the next step in the white supremacist playbook is.

— Melissa McEwan (@Shakestweetz) August 14, 2017

It's not magic that people who study social patterns can predict Trump like we've got a crystal ball. It's how systems of oppression work.

— Melissa McEwan (@Shakestweetz) August 14, 2017

The entire reason that he is predictable to me is because he adheres unerringly to the patterns of white supremacy. That is telling. And it is why no one should ever make fucking excuses for this president, ever.