WASHINGTON — Ohio Republican and Democrat Congress members spoke out Monday against a series of tweets posted by President Donald Trump that told four Democrat Congresswomen of color to "go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came."
Trump was referring to Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY, Ilhan Omar, D-MN, Ayanna Pressley, D-MS and Rashida Tlaib, D-MI, all of whom are U.S. citizens. Only Omar was born in Somalia but naturalized American.
Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) said the tweets were wrong and called the president to focus on other issues.
“I think it’s divisive and wrong. I wish the president would talk more about the strong economy that he has helped create, and unite people around that,” Portman said.
But Republicans such as U.S. Rep. Mike Turner, from Dayton, and former Ohio Gov. John Kasich used much stronger words to call out the president.
"What (Trump) said about Democrat women in Congress is deplorable and beneath the dignity of the office," Kasich said.
Tuner, in turn, asked Trump to apologize.
"I am confident that every Member of Congress is a committed American. (Trump)'s tweets from this weekend were racist and he should apologize. We must work as a country to rise above hate, not enable it," he said.
However, U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Fremont, didn't comment on the tweets and said, through his office, that he "does not think the president is racist."
U.S. Rep. Robert Latta, R-Bowling Green, also released a statement related to the tweets.
"I believe we should always be respectful in our political discourse and we must focus on the challenges facing our country," he said.
But Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi wasn't the only Democrat to use strong terms to suggest the president and his message were, in fact, racist.
Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown said the "remarks were racist and un-American. Period. I’ve called on President Trump to end this divisive rhetoric and I urge my colleagues in Congress to do the same.”
U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur said the tweets were racist and inappropriate.
"He is a divider, not a unifier and healer. He insults, antagonizes, and stokes resentments for political gain. America is so much better than his calculating rants," she said.
Additionally, Democratic presidential candidate and U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Akron) said he is "appalled that the president of the United States conducts himself in such a disgraceful and racist way."
