Trump: Dingell might be ‘looking up’
The president draws wide scorn and scant defense from his allies after comments about the late congressman.
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s impeachment night crack that the late Michigan Rep. John Dingell. might be “looking up” from hell drew wide scorn and scant defense from his allies Thursday, on the cusp of the 2020 election year and just days before Christmas.
“I was already having a really hard holiday,” Democratic Rep. Debbie Dingell., the congressman’s widow, told reporters in the Capitol. To the president, she tweeted: “Your hurtful words just made my healing much harder.”
Trump’s swipe at John Dingell., who died in February, came Wednesday night in swing-state Michigan as the House voted to impeach him on abuse of power and obstruction charges. Onstage, Trump quoted Debbie Dingell. as having thanked him for “A-plus” treatment after her husband’s death.
“So she calls me up: ‘It’s the nicest thing that’s ever happened, thank you so much,’ ” Trump said at the rally, mocking the congresswoman’s voice while recounting their call. (Dingell. challenged Trump’s recollection Thursday and said he called her.)
“‘John would be so thrilled. He’s looking down.’ ... ‘I said, ‘That’s OK. Don’t worry about it.’ ”
And then the president quipped: “Maybe he’s looking up, I don’t know.”
The crowd seemed unsure how to respond to Trump’s insult, The Washington Post reported. Some groaned. Some cheered and clapped. Trump quickly added, “But let’s assume he’s looking down.”
Then he returned to Debbie Dingell., whom he also called “a real beauty,” noting that he had been watching her on television during impeachment proceedings. “I look at her, and she’s so sincere, and what happens? ‘I vote to impeach Trump,’ ” he said.
Dingell. later told CNN she hadn’t realized Trump made those comments until a reporter contacted her. “I kind of felt kicked in the stomach,” she said.
Dingell., an Army veteran who spent 59 years in Congress, served longer than anyone else in U.S. history.
Trump’s attacks Wednesday night on the late Dingell. — during the president’s longest-ever campaign rally, at two hours and one minute — drew rebukes even from his staunchest allies.
“If he said that, he should apologize,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a retired Air Force defense lawyer and prosecutor who served in Iraq and Afghanistan and was awarded a Bronze Star.
Added GOP Rep. Fred Upton of Michigan in a tweet: “I’ve always looked up to John Dingell. — my good friend and a great Michigan legend. There was no need to ‘dis’ him in a crass political way. Most unfortunate and an apology is due.”
“John served his country very well,” House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, RCalif., said. “I think he made a great contribution to America . ... I considered him a friend.”
White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said on “CBS This Morning” that people should remember that Trump is the one who had been under attack by the House.
“Tensions are high,” she said. “A lot of riffing was going on.”
Trump on Thursday did not answer a question in the Oval Office about whether he will apologize to Debbie Dingell.
The political stakes were high, as well.
Trump narrowly flipped Michigan for the GOP in 2016 for the first time since 1988, and it remains a ferocious presidential battleground for the state’s 16 electoral votes. It seemed no coincidence that he chose to hold a rally in the state on the same night the House made him the third impeached president in U.S. history.
Dingell’s case, some observers suggested, may have been an example of Trump’s willingness to attack just about anyone if he thinks doing so will help him — or if he holds a grudge. He’s gone after people with disabilities, women, journalists, investigators, diplomats, intelligence officials and current and former members of his own administration.