White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest usually takes pains to avoid commenting on Donald Trump. But on Tuesday, for the greater part of an hour-long daily press briefing from the podium, he roasted the GOP frontrunner and the Republican Party over the candidate’s proposal to ban Muslims from entering the United States.
It’s not enough, Earnest asserted, for Republicans like Speaker Paul Ryan and other GOP candidates for president to say they oppose Trump’s proposed ban — as many have in strong terms — because they have indicated they would still vote for Trump if he’s the Republican presidential nominee.
“The fact is what Donald Trump said yesterday disqualifies him from being president,” Earnest said. “And for Republican candidates for president to stand by their pledge to support Mr. Trump, that in and of itself is disqualifying.”
The question isn’t so much about Trump’s comments, Earnest said, but whether the Republican Party will “be dragged into the dustbin of history with him.”
The problem, of course, for the GOP is that polling shows anti-Muslim sentiment is high, and Republicans will need the support of Trump’s current backers. Trump has also occasionally flirted with a third party run if he’s not, in his estimation, treated fairly by the party.
“If they are so cowed by Mr. Trump and his supporters that they are not willing to stand by the values enshrined by the Constitution, then they have no business serving as president of the United States themselves,” Earnest said.
Earnest hurled a litany of insults at Trump, from his “fake hair” (Trump has insisted it’s real) and calling his comments and proposals toxic, grotesque, offensive, and counter to the Constitution.
But Earnest repeatedly drew a broad brush to tar the larger GOP, noting the leadership role of Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana in GOP leadership, who reportedly referred to himself as “David Duke without the baggage,” and calling attention to the National Republican Senatorial Committee staffer who wrote a memo about riding the “Trump wave.”
Asked by a reporter how the Trump phenomenon has endured, Earnest pointed the finger at GOP leadership. “One reason that it endures, is you have a bunch of people in the Republican Party who say that they’ll vote for him for president,” Earnest said.
“And I’m not just talking about people who answer polls. I’m talking about the other candidates who stand next to him on stage on debate night. I’m talking about the chair of the RNC. I’m talking about the leadership of House Republicans. I’m talking about the strategists at the Republican campaign committees who are trying to figure out the best way to maximize the advantage for their candidates if Mr. Trump is their nominee. That’s the reason that he endures. It’s at least part of the explanation.”
During Tuesday’s briefing, Trump dominated the questions from the press corps—alongside a few queries about the looming shutdown showdown at the end of the week and tax cuts that expire at the end of the year.
Earnest said he decided to condemn Trump’s remarks today from the podium because he and press secretaries who have preceded him have used the platform to defend American values.
“We are talking about values that are fundamental to the creation of this country,” he said.
