Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) met with President Trump in the past on racial issues and says that Trump told him: "'Tim, I don't see what you see. What can I do to make things better?'" pic.twitter.com/BIqrJcdIPF
— Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) July 1, 2018
Van Jones gives his audience an interesting perspective on President Donald Trump’s views on race. Sen. Tim Scott (S.C.) acknowledged that discussing race with Trump has been “painful” and “uncomfortable” at times, but said he remains hopeful of Trump’s willingness to keep an open mind on the issue.
Scott, a Black conservative, made the comments during an interview with CNN’s Van Jones, where the two discussed the senator’s complicated relationship with the president and how their past discussions on racial issues have played out.
“They are hard, they’re painful, they’re uncomfortable to sit in the Oval Office and have a conversation with the president about things that you strongly disagree about,” Scott told Jones. “He didn’t change his perspective. I certainly can’t change my perspective; mine is educated by my experience.”
Still, he said he left their conversations feeling hopeful after the president said something he didn’t expect.
“The way it closed, I thought gave me reasons to be hopeful. It closed with: ‘…Tim I don’t see what you see. What can I do to make things better?'” Scott remembered. “That was a shocking response. I was surprised after the conversation that his response was, ‘Help me see a better light. ‘”
Scott said it was after that meeting that Trump agreed to support his legislation creating “opportunity zones,” which seek to use tax incentives to draw investment to communities of high poverty and low economic growth, The Hill reported. Their sit-down meeting came amid outcry over Trump’s comments claiming there were “fine people on both sides” after counter-protesters clashed with white nationalists at a rally in Charlottesville, Va. last year.
Watch more in the clip above.
