Wisconsin Republicans are rushing to try and clean up comments Donald Trump made trashing Milwaukee at a meeting with Republicans on Capitol Hill Thursday.
At the meeting Trump said that Milwaukee, the site of the Republican National Committee this year and the largest city in the crucial swing state, is a “horrible city.”
“Milwaukee, where we are having our convention, is a horrible city,” Trump said, according to Punchbowl News’ Jake Sherman.
Republicans from Wisconsin are offering various explanations for Trump’s remarks and in one case, denying that he made the comment at all.
Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI) attacked Sherman calling him a Democratic “shill” and claimed Trump was referring to the “crime rate” in Milwaukee.
“Another classic example of shitty reporting by a Democratic Party shill pretending to be a journalist. Lies busy omission,” Orden wrote on X, “@realDonaldTrump was specifically referring to the crime the CRIME RATE in Milwaukee.”
Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-WI) told reporter Lawrence Andrea that Trump was referring to the election when he made the comment. According to Grothman, Trump was “concerned about the election in MKE” and “felt we need to do better in urban centers around the country.”
But, Rep. Bryan Steil (R-WI) insisted that Trump never made the comment all.
“I was in the room. President Trump did not say this,” Steil wrote on X. “There is no better place than Wisconsin in July.”
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden tweeted a short message: “I happen to love Milwaukee,” with a photo of the Milwaukee Bucks during their visit to the White House after winning the 2021 NBA championship.
