Trump dismisses Lewis’ legacy

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump’s personal grievances aired anew this week as he dismissed the legacy of the late U.S. Representative John Lewis after snubbing the civil rights icon and defended his decision not to pay his respects following Lewis’ recent death.

Lewis, who played an instrumental role in passing the Voting Rights Act of 1965, was buried last week after an emotional service in Atlanta attended by three of the nation’s four living past presidents.

Asked about the legacy of Lewis and how history would remember him, Trump told Axios: “I really don’t know ... I don’t know John Lewis. He chose not to come to my inauguration ... I never met John Lewis, actually, I don’t believe.”

Lewis did not attend Trump’s January 2017 presidential inauguration after questioning the legitimacy of the 2016 presidential election amid Russian meddling, sparking a verbal clash with the then-president elect.