Trump claims black Democrat Andrew Gillum is a 'thief,' mayor of 'corrupt' city

President Trump built his appeal on a mix of populism and elitism — a contradictory combination that was perfectly on display in one of his Monday tweets.

As polls show Florida's gubernatorial race consistently leaning toward Democrat Andrew Gillum, Trump again relayed his support for GOP candidate Rep. Ron DeSantis (Fla.). In his Monday tweet, Trump called DeSantis a "Harvard/Yale educated man," while referring to Gillum as a "thief" and "mayor of poorly run Tallahassee."

In a response to Trump's tweet, the Toronto Star's Daniel Dale points out the obvious: "There's no evidence Andrew Gillum is a thief," and that "Gillum is a black man." Still, Trump's latest endorsement, which some critics called a "dog whistle," seems another indication that he is going all-in for DeSantis, who has repeatedly made his ties to Trump as a selling point for his campaign. And Trump, as The New York Times' Jonathan Martin put it, "will own this loss should DeSantis fall short."

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