During the Academy Awards Sunday, filmmaker Spike Lee was finally awarded an Oscar for co-writing the screenplay for the film "BlackkKlansman." When he took the stage, Lee reminded the audience that love must supersede hate and begged people to consider that in the 2020 election.
President Donald Trump took offense to the comment, tweeting that "love over hate" was "racist."
Monday's Nicolle Wallace panel similarly seemed confused about how someone could speak out against love.
"What does it say about Trump that he interprets a speech about love and doing the right thing as a racist hit," the MSNBC host said. "How is everything about him?"
"That he would take that on is so amazing," said former Rep. Donna Edwards (D-MD). She also jabbed at "teleprompter Trump" for trying to insult Lee for reading notes while on stage.
"But to turn -- he is right now in a bit of a racially tinged scandal, and it took him days to say anything and only under persistent questioning from the press corps about someone who targeted" Democrats and reporters, Wallace noted. "He is very vulnerable on this front and to project his own insecurities and fears about how he's perceived into someone winning an award and talking about political activism is ridiculous, even for him."
Dr. Jason Johnson, the political editor for The Root, quoted his grandmother's old-time wisdom "a hit dog will holler."
"When you talk about love and togetherness and peace, he's going to yell because he knows he doesn't represent those things," Johnson explained. "But also there's a deeper level to this -- with someone Trump is hostile about. He's particularly angry with the New York elites he used to be able to socialize with, he used to be able to run in the same circles of -- who now reject him, who now publicly criticize him. He wasn't two degrees of separation from Spike Lee. They were in the same position in New York. Now the same Spike Lee he might have had drinks at one point, or had at his parties, is saying he's a terrible person."
Johnson noted for Trump it isn't just about his own bigotry, but it's vanity because "he's no longer one of the cool kids."
"It's hard to argue with what Spike Lee said, love over hate, mobilize, exercise your vote, do the right thing, be on the right side of history," said former Barack Obama campaign manager Stephanie Cutter. "Who's against those things? I guess it's your interpretation."
Wallace cut in to say that it's obvious Trump is against all of those things.
Watch the full conversation below:
