Donald Trump is a racist. He says racist things. He does racist things. Racists know he’s a racist, which is why racists support him.

And yet it’s still welcome news when traditionally conservative religious leaders point out the obvious.

So kudos to San Antonio’s Catholic Archbishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller who urged Trump to “stop hate and racism, starting with yourself.”

We would show you that tweet… except, sadly, Garcia-Siller deleted it the next day and apologized for criticizing Trump.

… Garcia-Siller deleted the tweets and said in a statement: “I regret that my recent Tweet remarks were not focused on the issues but on an individual.” “We must pray for fervently for peace amidst all of the violence which seems to be overwhelming our society. We must be lights in the darkness,” the archbishop added.

Too bad. He started out so well…

The apology wasn’t necessary since Trump is the issue.

Not that we didn’t have shootings or racism before him, but it’s no small thing when the leader of our nation enables, empowers, and excuses white supremacists. People who used to keep their racist views to themselves now feel like they’ve been given permission to air them out and treat minority groups like garbage in public spaces.

Despite all that, Trump continues to have a supportive fan base among white evangelicals and Catholics. More of their leaders need to speak up and admit this behavior is unacceptable. That’s true for everyone, but certainly the president.

This may be the one time that an apology from a Catholic leader isn’t what the public needs to hear.

(Screenshot via YouTube)

