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Civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson, a close associate of Martin Luther King Jr., passed away at 84 after battling Parkinson's and progressive supranuclear palsy. US President Donald Trump took to Truth Social to post a tribute to the late leader in a post that also made explosive claims about his relationship with former US President Barack Obama.On Tuesday, the President took to his social media platform to pay his respects to the two-time presidential candidate, calling him a "good man, with lots of personality, grit and "street smarts."" He framed his relationship with Jackson as one of mutual respect and admiration and also stated that it was his "pleasure to help Jesse along the way," despite being "falsely and consistently" called a racist by "Radical Left, Democrats ALL.
"Trump then went on to mention the numerous initiatives and instances he helped the late leader with, including "providing office space for him and his Rainbow Coalition for years in the Trump Building at 4- Wall Street," and "pushed and passed long term funding for Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCUs)" among other things. “Jesse was a force of nature like few others before him. He had much to do with the Election, without acknowledgement or credit, of Barack Hussein Obama, a man who Jesse could not stand,” Trump wrote.
Ending his post with "deepest sympathies and condolences" to Jackson's family, he added that he "will be missed" and signed off, "President DONALD J. TRUMP."
Trump's post comes in the light of recent accusations of 'racism' against him when he posted an online video of Barack and Michelle Obama depicted as apes on his social media platform, during Black History month and refused to take down the now-deleted video or apologise for it. Obama responded to the video in an interview with journalist Brian Tyler Cohen, calling his successor's behaviour "deeply troubling" and labelling it a "clown show." “Just days ago Donald Trump put a picture of you, your face on an ape’s body — and so again, we’ve kind of seen the devolution of the discourse,” said Cohen. “How do we come back from the place that we have fallen into?” he asked.“First of all, I think it’s important to recognise that the majority of the American people find this behaviour deeply troubling,” Obama responded.
“It is true that it gets attention. It’s true that it’s a distraction, but as I’m travelling around the country, as you’re travelling around the country, you meet people — they still believe in decency, courtesy, kindness.” He stated that there was a "sort of clown show" playing out on social media and on television, adding that the sense of propriety and decorum for the office has been lost.
“What is true is there doesn’t seem to be any shame about this among people who used to feel like you had to have some sense of decorum and a sense of propriety and respect for the office.
So that’s been lost,” he added.As for his relationship with Jackson, the two leaders enjoyed a bond that was occasionally marred by frustration but was dominated largely by support. In 2008, while Obama was running for President, a mic caught the late leader saying a controversial statement about the then-candidate after he made comments about absentee fathers in the African-American community. Jackson later apologised for the remark and also famously cried at Obama's 2008 election win, acknowledging the new President was running "the last lap" of the struggle for Black political empowerment.
However, Trump has also had a rocky relationship with the Rainbow/PUSH coalition founder. As Trump mentioned in his tribute, the two connected in the 1990s when Trump provided office space to Jackson's coalition. At a 1999 press conference, Jackson referred to the then-business tycoon as a "friend" and praised him for "reaching out and being inclusive."Cracks appeared between the two associates during the 2016 presidential race when Jackson endorsed Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, when Trump was also running. He described Trump as "affable and social" in his early years but criticised his campaign ideas for being "off the main line" and claimed they could "destabilise the country."
English (US) ·