News / Interviews

Donald Trump polarizing American people: Attorney

Saturday, 12 November 2016 10:30 AM [ Last Update: Saturday, 12 November 2016 10:39 AM ]

A protester gestures at police at Pioneer Square in Portland, Oregon on November 11, 2016, to protest at the election of Donald Trump. (Photo by AFP)

The American people continue to take to the streets in different cities to show their anger at the victory of president-elect Donald Trump. While most protesters have held peaceful rallies, others have vandalized cars and shattered windows of businesses.

Jack Rice, a criminal defense attorney and former CIA officer, told Press TV on Saturday that the US president-elect has polarized the American society by his racist speeches during the election campaign.

“It is a very polarized country and this was probably the most brutal election that I have ever seen in my life time,” he said.

“What we’ve seen in a lot of words used by the president-elect when he was running really pushed the country apart when he talked about race, when he talked about Mexicans, when he talked about Muslims, when he talked about women and when he talked about a whole series of different people,” Rice added.

The former CIA officer said there is a lot of angst in the streets and "so what we are seeing across the United States are very large marches.”

“There are some people throughout the streets simply because they disagree with the results of the election meaning they think this was the wrong choice,” he said.

Others, Rice said, are out there in support of the Muslim community and other minorities.

He also criticized Trump for his Friday tweet in which he claimed that the protesters had been incited by the media to pour into the streets.

“Frankly I don’t think that’s the appropriate approach for the president. He certainly needs to take a closer look and understand there is a lot of hurt feelings and a lot of fear in this country,” Rice said.

The former CIA officer expressed hope that Trump would reach out to all of the Americans and emphasize that the country “at its best embraces all of its people."

Trump’s statements during his election campaign have agitated many. They included a call to ban all Muslims from coming to America as well as stopping Mexican migrants by building a long wall along the US-Mexico border.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk