Trump Goes After Bubba Wallace, NASCAR Over Noose ‘Hoax’
President Trump on Monday hammered driver Bubba Wallace over a fake noose “hoax” and went after NASCAR for banning the Confederate flag from their events.
Trump made the comments in an early morning tweet to his followers.
“Has [Wallace] apologized to all of those great NASCAR drivers [and] officials who came to his aid, stood by his side, [and] were willing to sacrifice everything for him, only to find out that the whole thing was just another HOAX?” he asked.
The false hate crime and decision to ban the flag “has caused (the) lowest ratings EVER!” he added.
Has @BubbaWallace apologized to all of those great NASCAR drivers & officials who came to his aid, stood by his side, & were willing to sacrifice everything for him, only to find out that the whole thing was just another HOAX? That & Flag decision has caused lowest ratings EVER!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 6, 2020
RELATED: NASCAR Bans Confederate Flag From All Racing Events
The Hoax
While Wallace didn’t report the alleged hate crime himself, unlike Jussie Smollett, he certainly played up reports that a noose had been found in his garage stall.
The FBI investigated the incident and determined it was actually a garage door pulldown that had been there since 2019.
Not coincidentally, Wallace was openly promoting the Black Lives Matter movement when the ‘noose’ report came to light, and fellow drivers offered a show of solidarity with him because well, the systemic racism BLM rants about isn’t nearly as systemic as they’d like you to think.
“I’ve been racing all of my life, we’ve raced out of hundreds of garages that never had garage pulls like that. … It’s a straight up noose.”
Bubba Wallace to Don Lemon. pic.twitter.com/HnJYpbPrlZ
— Jordan Heck (@JordanHeckFF) June 24, 2020
Initially, Wallace stood his ground and insisted the rope found in his garage was indeed a noose.
NASCAR subsequently released an image of the same garage pulldown that had been circulating online since 2019, but from a more sinister angle, prompting media outlets to try and regenerate the hate crime all over again.
To his credit, Wallace later issued a statement saying, “I think we’ll gladly take a little embarrassment over what the alternatives could have been.”
RELATED: Trump Slams NYC Black Lives Matter Mural As Symbol Of Hate
Backlash
Fellow NASCAR driver Tyler Reddick responded to Trump’s comments, defending Wallace and his sport without ever noting the incident was indeed a false hate crime report.
“We don’t need an apology,” he tweeted. “We did what was right and we will do just fine without your support.”
Senator Lindsey Graham chimed in telling Fox News he “(doesn’t) think Bubba Wallace has anything to apologize for.”
“You saw the best in NASCAR,” he continued. “When there was a chance that it was a threat against Bubba Wallace, they all rallied to Bubba’s side, so I would be looking to celebrate that kind of attitude more than being worried about it being a hoax.”
Trump’s tweet, though, was more about making a point regarding hate symbols and jumping to conclusions.
“The president’s merely pointing out that we’ve got to let facts come out before we rush to judgment, and there was no hate crime committed against Bubba Wallace as determined by the FBI,” White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany explained.
Last week, the President insisted a mural supporting the Black Lives Matter organization amounted to a “symbol of hate,” while Dr. Ben Carson noted conversely that the outrage would be wide-ranging if it were a Confederate flag being painted instead.
