Lawrence O’Donnell Rips Trump For ‘Lying About Renee Good’ In Insult-Laden Monologue
MS NOW host Lawrence O’Donnell on Tuesday excoriated President Donald Trump for lying about the fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good at the hands of a federal immigration agent — before chronicling a resulting exodus of top officials at the Department of Justice.
“Donald Trump says, ‘She ran him over,’” said O’Donnell. “The man who thinks he’s the acting president of Venezuela said, ‘She ran him over. She didn’t try to run him over. She ran him over.’ Those were Donald Trump’s exact words when lying about Renee Good.”
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Footage of the incident in Minnesota last week showed Good partially blocking the road with her car but attempting to reverse away from the situation, when an ICE agent, later identified as Jonathan Ross, approached and fired through her windshield.
Trump claimed one day later that she “ran him over,” and according to a Minnesota Star Tribune report citing sources familiar with the matter, his Justice Department has since requested that the slain woman’s widow be investigated “for possible federal charges.”
O’Donnell noted this has since led several senior DOJ officials to resign in protest.
“It was mass resignation day in the Trump Justice Department today from Minnesota to Washington, D.C.,” said the “Last Word” host during his segment on the aftermath. “In Washington, six members of the Civil Rights Division of the Trump Justice Department quit.”
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O’Donnell cited an MS NOW article about top staffers of the criminal section at the Civil Rights Division leaving their Justice Department jobs after Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon “decided not to investigate” Ross for killing Good.
Dhillon is an anti-voting rights extremist — and was Trump’s legal adviser for several years.
The article noted that the division’s criminal section normally probes “any fatal shooting” by law enforcement — and “specializes” in rooting out potentially “improper use of force.” O’Donnell noted that these staffers are “not being allowed” to do so in this case, however.
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“And in Minnesota today, another six attorneys quit the Trump Justice Department and the U.S. attorney’s office there,” he added. “The Minnesota Star Tribune reports that, quote, ‘A majority of the leadership team at the Minnesota U.S. attorney’s office resigned on Jan. 13.’”
The Tribune reported that these individuals quit over “directives from top federal officials,” such as “blocking” the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension from the investigation into the shooting — and a “request” from Trump’s DOJ to investigate Good’s widow.
Becca Good mourned her late wife in a heart-wrenching public statement Friday.
O’Donnell began his show with relatable anger and wondered if Trump has dementia, but noted that it’s difficult to make a public diagnosis — because his combined “stupidity” and “pathological lying” can make anyone sound like they’re “in neurological decline.”
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“He’s also the most ignorant person in the history of the American presidency and usually operates at a level of public stupidity never seen in American political history,” he added.
