Alec Baldwin says Americans are 'mentally ill' if they vote for Trump again
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Actor Alec Baldwin argued on Wednesday that Americans would be "mentally ill" if they vote for President Trump in the upcoming election.
"Trump has reached for, and nearly gained, a control of the federal govt unrivaled by other Presidents," Baldwin tweeted. "He fired huge numbers of govt professionals. He steamrolled the Congress, whenever possible. And now this. If you vote for Trump again, you are mentally ill."
In another tweet, he specifically targeted African Americans who voted for Trump.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"This is the White House press secretary," he said, retweeting a post from White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany. "If you are African American and vote for Trump, you are mentally ill."
McEnany tweeted in 2012 that President Obama's brother was living in a "hut in Kenya."
CNN COMMENTATOR ATTACKS BLACK TRUMP SUPPORTERS: 'SHAME ON YOU'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}His tweets were just a couple in a series denouncing the president, whom the actor has imitated on "Saturday Night Live." On Friday, he also told Trump voters to "stay home" on Election Day.
"You know, in your heart, that he is an incompetent idiot and self-seeking punk. Say you were sick. Say you were scared. Don’t bother voting. Stay home," he said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}He previously described Trump's presidency as a "virus" that could be cured with the 2020 presidential election. "The virus in the US began in January of 2017. The vaccine arrives in November," he said at the end of last month.
Baldwin's tweets reflect a growing discontent among media figures who have taken issue with President Trump's response to the coronavirus. It was also the latest incident in which media figures suggested that African-Americans, in particular, shouldn't support the president.
Actress Debra Messing previously promoted a church sign that called black Trump supporters "mentally ill." Messing eventually apologized but maintained that Republicans tried to suppress the black vote.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Charlottesville was about Trump supporters hating POC and Jews," she added.
Besides in Messing's tweet, black Trump supporters have been targeted by former Sen. Claire McCaskill and CNN commentator Angela Rye, who said those individuals should be ashamed.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"You want to give Donald Trump kudos for throwing Cheez-It bits at you and then criticize the people who have spent their careers doing things for the betterment of black people and black society," Rye said in February. "And I would just say at that point if you still go over to Donald Trump after that: Shame on you."
Her comments came as the Trump campaign announced a new initiative designed to drive black support for the president. Katrina Pierson, a senior adviser to the campaign, called the move "woke," prompting laughter from Rye.
McCaskill similarly received a wave of backlash after she appeared to single out Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson for his race.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"One of these things is not like the others," McCaskill, now a political analyst for NBC News and MSNBC, tweeted alongside a photo of Carson on an airplane with other Trump surrogates. "Hint: they made him squat in the aisle so he was visible."
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Prominent Trump supporters, including Pierson, fired back.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Only a closet racist would make such an incredibly stupid and non factual [sic] observation," Pierson tweeted. "There were several 'things' on that plane. TWO OTHERS IN THAT ROW! You’re trying too hard, but don’t worry... You’ll see us soon in a town near you."