Fox News’ Brit Hume Says Trump’s ‘Go Back’ Tweets Don’t Meet Dictionary Definition of ‘Racism’
Fox News’ Senior Political Analyst Brit Hume employed some political analysis on Twitter Monday, saying President Donald Trump’s tweets that four congresswomen of color should “go back” to the countries of their ethnic origins were not racist.
“Trump’s ‘go back’ comments were nativist, xenophobic, counterfactual [sic] and politically stupid. But they simply do not meet the standard definition of racist, a word so recklessly flung around these days that its actual meaning is being lost,” he wrote.
As of this writing, Hume had just over 700 retweets and nearly 4,000 favorites on the tweet. Hume had over 5,000 replies. If you don’t know, that’s what Twitter users call a ratio. If a tweet gets more replies than retweets or favs, it’s got a ratio, which is often heralded as proof the original tweet was bad or broadly disagreeable.
Trump’s “go back” comments were nativist, xenophobic, counterfactul and politically stupid. But they simply do not meet the standard definition of racist, a word so recklessly flung around these days that its actual meaning is being lost.
— Brit Hume (@brithume) July 15, 2019
Contrary responses to Hume poured in from reporters at competing outlets and everyday consumers, prompting him to tweet again: “For those who asked what is my standard definition of racism, here is an answer: Note definition 1.”
For those who asked what is my standard definition of racism, here is an answer: Note definition 1. https://t.co/4kPRE3wDA7
— Brit Hume (@brithume) July 15, 2019
He linked to the Merriam-Webster dictionary definition of “racism,” specifically highlighting the first definition, which states, racism is “a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race.”
Merriam-Webster tweeted, too, of course.
Many of our entries have helpful usage notes if you scroll farther than the first definition. pic.twitter.com/a91ezmH9rW
— Merriam-Webster (@MerriamWebster) July 15, 2019
“Many of our entries have helpful usage notes if you scroll farther than the first definition,” said the tweet, which also included an image full of text cautioning against using dictionaries as “the final arbiter in arguments over a word’s meaning.”