Donald Trump Jr. Rips Teachers Unions In Front Of A Gun Wall; Critics Go Ballistic
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Donald Trump Jr. rocketed even further off the rails in a Twitter video aimed at teachers unions Saturday — in front of a wall of guns.
Vox journalist Aaron Rupar commented that the rant from the former president’s son, in his typical cranked up rhetoric, made the message look and sound like an “extremist video posted from a bunker of an undisclosed location.”
This looks and sounds like an extremist video posted from a bunker of undisclosed location pic.twitter.com/LNWmiUN96I
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 21, 2021
Trump Jr. bashed teachers whom he accused have “prevented schools from opening” because they don’t want to return to class unvaccinated or without proper safety protocols in place and risk their lives. “The teachers unions are out of control & are destroying our kid’s futures!” he noted in a caption with the video.
His argument was difficult to follow. He first intoned “follow the science” — which would support vaccinations and careful health measures to protect those exposed to group situations amid the COVID-19 pandemic, such as teaching classrooms of children.
Trump Jr. is apparently part of a growing trend among right-wingers who include guns with their images. Freshman Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) last week posed in front of AR-15-style firearms at her home during a virtual House committee hearing.
Gun nerds on Twitter couldn’t agree on the type of firearms on the wall behind Trump. Some were convinced they were flashy, custom-made pistols or even target pistols altered with telescopic sights perhaps to make them appear more menacing. In any case, critics viewed the guns as a deliberately threatening message.
Posting video attack of teacher unions with wall of guns backdrop. Deplorable.
— Tom (@TomBalawejder) February 21, 2021
First, in the era of school shootings, it’s in really bad taste for Don Jr. to attack teachers on front of a wall full of guns. It’s gross. It feels like a threat in this climate. And right on the heels of the Parkland anniversary. https://t.co/Uauycd7Lpg
— Randi Weingarten (@rweingarten) February 21, 2021
Well, this obviously touched a nerve. Teachers have been maligned, demonized, & ridiculed for wanting their safety to be taken seriously, so they can return to their beloved profession, but they aren’t even considered “essential” enough to get vaccines in many places.
2/— Kim Zimmerman (@KimZimmerman1) February 21, 2021
Are they all going to be posting videos with their guns in the background now? FFS
— Hamish Mitchell (@H_MitchellPhoto) February 21, 2021
— Pendragon 🇨🇦 (@CP17188007) February 21, 2021
I am a teacher. And a union steward. In America’s 5th largest school district. Teachers unions are made up of teachers - to improve our working conditions.
A teacher’s working conditions ARE a student’s learning conditions. Stop demonizing people who chose altruism for a career— D. A. Wood 🇺🇸🌊 🇺🇸🌊 🇺🇸🌊 (@piedpenguin) February 21, 2021
This is all I hear anytime a Trump opens its mouth: pic.twitter.com/od8V9779OU
— Super Liberal Man (@SuperLiberaIMan) February 21, 2021
He could have used a good public school education. Maybe he would have learned how to form a coherent argument based on evidence and critical thinking.
But alas. He’s just a rambling moron with some guns.— Craig Newman (@craignewman) February 21, 2021
This is your GOP, crackpot son of the former president releases video with weapons visible to send coded message that it's time to take up arms. We slept on January 6 because people didn't heed the warning signs and yet here we go again, this isn't a dog whistle it's a bullhorn!
— Robert C. Evans (@evansrc717) February 21, 2021
He doesn’t look well.
— Walter Shaub (@waltshaub) February 21, 2021
If you’re unhappy with your life right now, just remember that you’re not Don Jr. bizarrely attacking teachers in front of a gun shrine
— Lindy Li (@lindyli) February 21, 2021
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This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.