White House adviser Kellyanne Conway said Friday that the alleged New Zealand mosque shooter was wrong to call President Trump “a symbol of renewed white identity” and said the alleged shooter was instead an “eco-terrorist.”
“He’s wrong. The shooter is an evil, hateful person who is wrong about that point,” Conway told reporters about the alleged shooter’s reference to Trump in his 74-page manifesto.
Conway, speaking on the White House driveway, encouraged people to read the manifesto and “cover the entire manifesto if you’re going to cover a piece of it.”
“I would say, though, read the manifesto because it’s very chilling to read it,” Conway said.
The document laid out plans to ambush a pair of Christchurch-area mosques, where the suspect allegedly killed 49 people Friday. The manifesto worried about non-white immigration to Western countries, particularly Islamic immigration, and attacked the political establishment in many countries. It expressed hope to spark a racial civil war in the United States.
Conway twice contended that the suspect considered himself an “eco-terrorist.” In his manifesto, the author did not call himself an eco-terrorist but three times referred to himself as an “eco-fascist.”
The term “eco-terrorist” is commonly used to describe politically motivated violence linked to concern about the environment.
The author made a reference to Trump in part of his manifesto.
“Were/are you a supporter of Donald Trump?” he asked. “As a symbol of renewed white identity and common purpose? Sure. As a policy maker and leader? Dear god no.”
Conway said it was important to consider other parts of the manifesto, including a section that said, “the nation with the closest political and social values to my own is the People’s Republic of China.”
“He is telling you he aligns with China. He’s telling you he’s not a conservative. He’s not a Nazi. He’s an eco-terrorist. He is an evil, hateful person who shouldn’t be given a platform, frankly,” Conway said. “He says I’m not a conservative, I’m not a Nazi, I’m an eco-terrorist, and he certainly absolutely is a ruthless killer.”
