Ma'Khia Bryant: Kayleigh McEnany slams Jen Psaki's comments about systemic racism for 'demonizing' cops
Kayleigh McEnany never shies away from criticizing current White House press secretary Jen Psaki. This time, the former press secretary who was part of the Trump administration is up in arms against Psaki for her "damaging" comments on the fatal Ma'Khia Bryant shooting that tie the teenager's death to race.
McEnany called out Psaki on her Fox News show 'Outnumbered' for "demonizing" Nicholas Reardon, the officer involved in the shooting, and "dubbing the police as racist."
RELATED ARTICLES
Merely minutes before a jury found Derek Chauvin guilty of all three counts of manslaughter and murder charges in the killing of George Floyd, 16-year-old Black teen Ma'Khia Bryant was shot four times by Reardon on Tuesday, April 20, 2021.
What did Psaki say?
On Wednesday, April 21, 2021, Psaki spoke to reporters about Bryant's death. "She was a child. We're thinking of her friends and family in the communities that are hurting and grieving her loss."
When addressing the shooting, Psaki didn't just express grief and support for Bryant's family but also discussed systemic racism. "We know that police violence disproportionately impacts Black and Latino people in communities and that Black women and girls - like Black men and boys - experience higher rates of police violence."
"We also know that there are particular vulnerabilities that children in foster care, like Ma'Khia, face."
Psaki was also gravely aware of how the incident occurred just minutes before Chauvin's guilty verdict was announced. She commented that the teen's death came "just as America was hopeful of a step forward after the traumatic and exhausting trial of Derek Chauvin and the verdict that was reached." She simultaneously confirmed that the Biden administration would be "head on" with green lighting police reform laws in the US.
McEnany disagrees
On her Fox News show, which McEnany joined in March 2021, she slammed Psaki's comments, saying that she "holds an incredible megaphone here."
"And to demonize this officer, to dub the police as racist which is basically what she did by saying that action was not justified or merited when this young girl was about to lose her life at the end of a knife, it’s so damaging."
"It's exactly right to put the microscope on that because even President Obama was criticized for saying the parents of Michael Brown will never get to hold him again. And now we know the facts of that scenario and that the police officer involved was absolved by the president's own Justice Department. But even President Obama was criticized for going that far."
"[Psaki] has not only gone that far, she’s gone even further to directly tie this to race without evidence, without proof," McEnany continued.
"And she should be asked about that directly from the podium. And one more point, the Ferguson effect - I don’t take advice from Jim Comey, but he was right about this when he said that in the wake of Michael Brown's death, he said the murder rate went up in 40 cities because police were afraid of the viral video effect, the Ferguson effect because 72 per cent of officers said they were more reluctant to make stops. It’s so damaging and she’s taking it even a step further," she concluded.
