BRIDGEWATER, N.J. (AP) — President Donald Trump didn’t know the significance to Black Americans of the date and location he chose for his first campaign rally since the coronavirus pandemic more than three months ago, key Republican supporters of the president in Congress said Sunday.
Trump had scheduled the rally for June 19, known as Juneteenth because it marks the end of slavery in the United States.
He resisted until late Friday when, in a rare turnabout, Trump tweeted that he had moved the rally to this Saturday, June 20, out of respect for the view of supporters and others who had asked him to.
“The president moving the date by a day once he was informed on what the Juneteenth was, that was a good decision on his part,” said Scott, the only black Republican senator.
Trump had been under pressure over his response to civil unrest following the death of George Floyd, a black man, by a white Minneapolis police officer at the time his return to campaign rallies was announced, including tweets that were interpreted as insensitive to African Americans.
