Nationwide — President Donald Trump, who arrogantly boasted about helping free the three UCLA players who were detained in China for shoplifting, is now saying that he should have left them in prison.
“As long as my boy’s back here, I’m fine,” he commented. “I’m from L.A. I’ve seen a lot worse things happen than a guy taking some glasses. My son has built up enough character that one bad decision doesn’t define him. Now if you can go back and say when he was 12-years old he was shoplifting and stealing cars and going wild, then that’s a different thing.”
This response apparently angered Trump because he tweeted:
Now that the three basketball players are out of China and saved from years in jail, LaVar Ball, the father of LiAngelo, is unaccepting of what I did for his son and that shoplifting is no big deal. I should have left them in jail!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 19, 2017
Then he tweeted again hours later:
Shoplifting is a very big deal in China, as it should be (5-10 years in jail), but not to father LaVar. Should have gotten his son out during my next trip to China instead. China told them why they were released. Very ungrateful!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 19, 2017
Naturally, this sparked tension in the African American community who have long been saying that Trump’s remarks seem to have racial overtones.