Donald Trump has a tenuous relationship with the truth, to put it politely.
Now he has taken his dishonesty across the Atlantic, to Europe.
RawStory is reporting that at a campaign rally this week, Trump turned his attacks on German Chancellor Angela Merkel. He claimed that her policy of accepting refugees from Syria has had a terrible impact on her country.
At the Ohio rally, Trump accused Hillary Clinton of wanting to emulate Chancellor Merkel, saying:
“In short, Hillary Clinton wants to be America’s Angela Merkel and you know what a disaster this massive immigration has been to Germany and the people of Germany. Crime has risen to levels that no one thought they would ever, ever see. It is a catastrophe.”
Except that, once again, Trump is making stuff up as he goes along.
German official: Trump's claims about Germany's crime rates and refugees are based on "fears, lies and half-truths". https://t.co/hB48aL4d8O
— Rafal Hill (@rafalhill) August 16, 2016
Michael Roth, Germany’s European Affairs Minister, called out the Republican candidate for his refusal to acknowledge the facts. He said that he wanted to correct the record, given that the statements were basically a bunch of lies. He said:
“I’m sorry that the Republican presidential candidate trumpets out things like that without any factual basis. If he had studied the actual situation in Germany, he would know that, while the many refugees who came to Germany and Europe pose a big challenge for us, and everything is still not completely resolved, they have not led to a massive increase in crime rates.”
Statistics show, in fact, that crime has remained stable in Germany for the past two years. There are no massive criminal gangs roaming the streets of Berlin or Frankfurt.
I just returned from two weeks in Germany. I can tell you from first hand experience that my German friends are a lot less worried about crime, terrorism, gun violence, or immigration than any American I know.
Donald Trump is making himself an international laughing stock for his relentless lying. He’s been hearing from plenty of Americans about it. Now the Germans are getting into the act.
I wonder if Angela Merkel is familiar with the Pinocchio story?
Check out Trump’s comments on Chancellor Merkel:
Featured image via YouTube screengrab.
