Donald trumps self
Donald J. Trump crashed his own convention Monday by giving a phone interview to Fox News during prime time speeches.
AKRON, Ohio - With his craving for attention, Donald J. Trump can be his own worst enemy.
As Pat Smith, the mother of one of the men who died in the Benghazi attack four years ago spoke emotionally at the Republican National Convention Monday, Trump called into The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News and chatted about Black Lives Matter, racism, and the awesomely winning way he crushed Ohio Gov. John Kasich in the primaries.
Fox, a major news conduit for Republicans and conservatives, made the natural decision to cut away from Ms. Smith and go with the Trump phone interview.
"I blame Hillary Clinton personally for the death of my son, personally," Smith said, speaking of her son Sean with tears in her eyes. "Hillary for prison. She deserves to be in stripes." The audience at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland roared its support.
O'Reilly asked Trump if Black Lives Matter protestors were responsible for the killings of police officers. "In certain instances they have ignited people," Trump said. "Everyone is free to say what you want to say up to a point, when you're calling death to the police and kill the police, which is what they said, that's a real big problem."
The soon-to-be GOP nominee also said he is the "least racist person there is" and is doing well with African American voters. (Polls show the opposite).
Trump also ripped Kasich for skipping the GOP convention in his own state, saying he should come out of "honor."
It was just one of the jarring moments that muddied Trump's intended Monday night message that he is the strong leader needed to keep America safe. He has not mastered the political art of knowing when to get out of his own way.