Historian blisters Mike Pence for comparing Trump to MLK: A 'perversion' that 'flies in the face of his memory'

Princeton historian Julian Zelizer on Monday smacked down Vice President Mike Pence for comparing President Donald Trump favorably with civil rights icon Martin Luther King.

After watching a clip of Pence quoting MLK and comparing his push for civil rights to Trump's push for a border wall, Zelizer said that it was a "perversion" of King's legacy to link him in any way to Trump.

"The policies of this administration, from the border wall to voting rights restrictions, are antithetical to everything that Martin Luther King fought for," he said. "So having Vice President Pence invoke Martin Luther King, for this deal or for anything else, really flies in the face of his memory."

During his Sunday interview on CBS, Pence said that Trump's call for a border wall was as "inspiring" to Americans as MLK's call for civil rights.

"You think of how he changed America, he inspired us to change through the legislative process, to become a more perfect union," Pence said. "That’s exactly what President Trump is calling on the Congress to do, come to the table in a spirit of good faith."

Watch the video below.