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MSNBC Host Asks Charlottesville Victim's Mother 5 Straight Questions About Trump

Tur: 'I don't want to make this about politics'

August 17, 2017

MSNBC host Katy Tur asked the mother of the woman killed in Charlottesville, Va., five straight questions about President Donald Trump on Thursday.

Tur's first question to Susan Bro was about her daughter, Heather Heyer, who died when a man rammed his car into a crowd of counter-protesters in Charlottesville. The suspect has reported ties to fringe, white supremacist groups.

Tur then jumped into five straight questions about Trump, although Bro did not offer any criticism of the president in her answers.

"Susan, the president tweeted yesterday, 'Memorial service today for beautiful and incredible Heather Heyer, a truly special young woman. She will be long remembered by all!'" Tur said. "He also told reporters that he would be reaching out to you. Have you had a chance to speak with the president?"

Bro said that she was contacted by the White House multiple times, but her phone was off and she had not been able to find time to speak with Trump yet, saying it "feels awful, but I just haven't had time to talk to the president."

"Often times, in public tragedies like this, the president will be invited to speak at a memorial service. Was President Trump invited to this one?" Tur asked.

Bro said that no public officials were invited to speak at her daughter's memorial service on Wednesday. She said some politicians asked to speak, but were denied as the memorial service was about her daughter.

"You said yesterday that you're speaking now because your daughter cannot speak now," Tur said. "When you do have a chance to speak to the president, what will you tell him?"

Bro answered that her daughter had a mission to make things more fair and equitable for all and that she would support any action that Trump takes to help that goal.

"What would you like to see him do?" Tur asked.

Bro said that she did not know and would not speak about that.

Tur, having focused most of the interview on Trump instead of on Bro, her daughter, or the events in Charlottesville, claimed that she did not want to make the interview about politics, before asking yet one more question about Trump.

"I don't want to make this about politics, but politics is so consuming this tragedy and so consuming everything that happened in Charlottesville that day. The president went on to blame both sides again just the other day saying, 'There was violence on the left, there was violence on the right,' and equating the two," Tur said. "Did you have a reaction to that?"

Bro answered Tur in almost the same way Trump did to the media on Tuesday, saying that she believes in having facts straight before making a statement.