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Trump's treatment of the Dunn family was reality TV spectacle at its most heartless (Opinion piece)
When the grieving parents of Harry Dunn arrived from the UK at the White House, they never expected to meet Donald Trump. Their only hope was to get justice for their son, a British teen killed by a reckless American diplomatic wife driving a car.
Trump met with the parents. But instead of promising to allow the British police to prosecute Anne Sacoolas, who fled to the United States after striking and killing the 19-year-old, he had a far more odious idea: convince the family to meet Saccolas in front of a pool of photographers.
It was reality TV spectacle at its most soulless and the parents were rightly unwilling to participate in such a farce. The Dunn family felt “ambushed,” a spokesman said. The event was “obviously designed to be a press call.”
The family is open to a meeting in the future, but rightfully want it to take place “on our terms and on UK soil.” At the minimum, they want to see Anne Sacoolas prosecuted and not hiding behind the shield of diplomatic immunity. Such a meeting should not be about glorifying America’s carnival barker president, but about furthering healing and justice.
The family spokesman, Radd Seiger, reserved particular scorn for Trump’s new national security advisor, Robert O’Brien. “It struck us that this meeting was hastily arranged by nincompoops on the run and in particular Mr O’Brien, who appeared to be extremely uptight and aggressive and did not come across at all well in this meeting which required careful handling and sensitivity.”
Trump met with the parents. But instead of promising to allow the British police to prosecute Anne Sacoolas, who fled to the United States after striking and killing the 19-year-old, he had a far more odious idea: convince the family to meet Saccolas in front of a pool of photographers.
It was reality TV spectacle at its most soulless and the parents were rightly unwilling to participate in such a farce. The Dunn family felt “ambushed,” a spokesman said. The event was “obviously designed to be a press call.”
The family is open to a meeting in the future, but rightfully want it to take place “on our terms and on UK soil.” At the minimum, they want to see Anne Sacoolas prosecuted and not hiding behind the shield of diplomatic immunity. Such a meeting should not be about glorifying America’s carnival barker president, but about furthering healing and justice.
The family spokesman, Radd Seiger, reserved particular scorn for Trump’s new national security advisor, Robert O’Brien. “It struck us that this meeting was hastily arranged by nincompoops on the run and in particular Mr O’Brien, who appeared to be extremely uptight and aggressive and did not come across at all well in this meeting which required careful handling and sensitivity.”
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/oct/16/trumps-treatment-dunn-family-reality-tv-spectacle-at-its-most-heartless
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