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Is Trump's Racially Charged Rhetoric Part of His 2020 Election Strategy?

Brian Padden

   WASHINGTON - The mass shooting in El Paso, Texas, on Saturday has again
   highlighted concerns over President Donald Trump's use of racially
   divisive language about immigrants and minorities.

   The white suspect in the case, identified as Patrick Crusius,
   reportedly wrote an anti-immigrant manifesto before targeting Hispanic
   shoppers in a district near the Mexican border. At least 20 were killed
   by the shooter.

   Fueling tensions

   The governor of Texas called the mass shooting a hate crime and the
   U.S. Attorney in Texas is investigating it as a possible case of
   domestic terrorism.

   Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke, a former congressman
   who represented El Paso, is among a number of critics accusing
   President Donald Trump of fueling racial tensions that escalated into
   deadly violence.

   "The president's language, his rhetoric has produced the kinds of hate
   crimes that we saw in El Paso yesterday, but we've been seeing across
   this country-- they've been on the rise for each one of the last three
   years," said O'Rourke.

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