--- title: Michael Steele Says Trump Is Racist for 'Shithole' Comments description: Speaking to MSNBC's Hallie Jackson, Michael Steele said the evidence of Trump being a racist was "incontrovertible." canonical: https://time.com/5101077/donald-trump-racist-michael-steele-shithole-countries/ author: Kate Samuelson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-01-12T17:40:01.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-31T11:27:45.993Z article:section: Politics og:title: The RNC’s First Black Chairman Says Trump Is Racist og:description: "At this point, the evidence is incontrovertible, it's right there" og:url: https://time.com/5101077/donald-trump-racist-michael-steele-shithole-countries/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5d36b3e016eb077a/6988ab050b72e355286eb737/michael-steele-donald-trump.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2535 og:image:height: 1426 og:image:alt: RNC Chair Candidates Debate At National Press Club og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The RNC’s First Black Chairman Says Trump Is Racist twitter:description: "At this point, the evidence is incontrovertible, it's right there" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5d36b3e016eb077a/6988ab050b72e355286eb737/michael-steele-donald-trump.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 'The Evidence is Incontrovertible.' The RNC’s First Black Chairman Says Trump Is Racist > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=f4e79ae9-4709-49ea-addf-1bbe51f5a50b&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) by [Kate Samuelson](https://time.com/author/kate-samuelson/) ## Kate Samuelson Jan 12, 2018 5:40 PM UTC  Former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele participates in a debate between chairmanship candidates of the RNC, on Jan. 3, 2011 in Washington, D.C. Former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele participates in a debate between chairmanship candidates of the RNC, on Jan. 3, 2011 in Washington, D.C. Alex Wong—Getty Images by [Kate Samuelson](https://time.com/author/kate-samuelson/) ## Kate Samuelson Jan 12, 2018 5:40 PM UTC [Michael Steele](http://time.com/4540209/rnc-michael-steele-donald-trump/), the first black chairman of the Republican National Committee, said in an interview with MSNBC Friday that he believes President Donald Trump is racist. Steele’s comments follow Trump’s reported description of Haiti, El Salvador and some African nations as “[shithole countries.”](http://time.com/5100058/donald-trump-shithole-countries/?xid=homepage) “At this point, the evidence is incontrovertible, it’s right there,” Steele said when asked if Trump is racist by MSNBC’s Hallie Jackson. Trump reportedly made the controversial remark while discussing a potential immigration deal with lawmakers at the White House on Thursday. According to the [The Washington _Post,_](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-attacks-protections-for-immigrants-from-shithole-countries-in-oval-office-meeting/2018/01/11/bfc0725c-f711-11e7-91af-31ac729add94%5Fstory.html?utm%5Fterm=.672055eb4bda&wpisrc=al%5Fnews%5F%5Falert-politics--alert-national&wpmk=1) Trump suggested the U.S. should bring in more immigrants from places like Norway, rather than “having all these people from shithole countries come here.” Trump has denied making the comment as reported. “This was not the language used,” he tweeted Friday. > [](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/951793123985973248) Several other people, [including CNN anchor Don Lemon](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2018/01/12/this-is-cnn-tonight-im-don-lemon-the-president-of-the-united-states-is-racist/), have accused President Trump of being racist following the remarks. When asked about his relationship with President Trump, Steele responded: “\[Trump doesn’t\] talk to me anymore. That conversation stopped a while back because I wasn’t sycophantic . . . I wasn’t sitting there \[saying\], ‘here’s your towel sir, yes sir, no sir,’ that’s not how I play. And if you come to the table that way with him, your chances of having a conservation ends abruptly.” Steele, who led the Republican National Committee from 2009 to 2011, has been a frequent critic of Trump. After the President endorsed Alabama Republican Senate nominee Roy Moore, who was accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women, Steele tweeted that “America no longer has a moral compass under \[Trump’s\] ‘leadership.'” And in 2016, Steele [said during a dinner in San Francisco](http://time.com/4540209/rnc-michael-steele-donald-trump/) that he would not be voting for the then-Republican presidential candidate, saying that Trump “captured that racist underbelly, that frustration, that angry underbelly of American life and gave voice to that.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5101077/donald-trump-racist-michael-steele-shithole-countries/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5101077/donald-trump-racist-michael-steele-shithole-countries/"},"headline":"'The Evidence is Incontrovertible.' 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