Donald Trump's campaign on Saturday pushed President Joe Biden's administration to apologize to "Catholics and Christians," prompting insiders to wonder why Trump drew a distinction between the two denominations of the shared faith.
Trump's campaign demanded Biden apologize for declaring Easter as "Trans Visibility Day," but the former president's own former advisor blew apart that claim by showing that the date for Trans Visibility Day was set 10 years ago and Biden wasn't involved.
But political onlookers on both sides of the aisle noticed an interesting line in Trump's reply.
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"We call on Joe Biden's failing campaign and White House to issue an apology to the millions of Catholics and Christians across America who believe tomorrow is for one celebration only," the statement says.
Bloomberg columnist Matthew Yglesias asked, "Is Trump’s campaign drawing a distinction here between 'Catholics' and 'Christians?'"
Former New York Times columnist Clyde Haberman said the following:
"Trump, as you know, is a mass of old-time stereotypes, whether he’s talking about 'the Blacks' or about Jews being good with money," he said on Saturday. "So I’m betting he sees Catholics as somehow separate from other Christians."
Those sentiments were echoed by A.J. Delgado, formerly a senior adviser to the Trump presidential campaign in 2016 who worked for the Trump transition team after the 2016 election. Earlier in the day, Delgado debunked MAGA's misinformation about Biden's Easter celebration at the White house.
"Has any journalist reached out to the Trump Campaign to ask why they engaged in a slur against Catholics, indicating Catholics aren’t Christian?" she asked. "For those unaware, this isn’t just due to stupidity. It’s a long-used slur, from certain Protestant denominations, to say Catholics are not Christian."
Journalist John Harwood also chimed in Saturday, saying simply, "Catholics and Christians?"
