Atlanta newspaper enters Trump, Lewis feud with front-page story

The front page of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Sunday blasts President-elect Donald Trump with the headline “Atlanta to Trump: Wrong.”

The accompanying front-page article reacts to Trump’s criticism of Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), after the incoming president said Saturday the longtime congressman does nothing for his district, which Trump  said is in “horrible shape and falling apart (not to mention crime infested).”

“The district that Trump described as in ‘horrible shape’ includes Emory University and Morehouse College, as well as Spelman College and Georgia Tech. The Coca-Cola headquarters is just one of that district’s many, high-profile corporate residents,” the AJC article declares.  

{mosads}“Lewis represents Midtown’s shiny residential high-rises and the pricey Intown neighborhoods filled with renovated homes, the Beltline and Ponce City Market.”

The newspaper quoted several local politicians, including Kasim Reed, Atlanta’s mayor, in a rejection of Trump’s comments. 

“That PEOTUS Trump would attack Congressman Lewis on MLK Day weekend for ‘all talk … no action’ when he bled to actually ‘Make America Great’ is why far less than half the country supports him at the dawn of his presidency,” Reed told the paper.

The article also cited crime statistics that show Atlanta ranked 14th in crime among cities in the United States.

Trump slammed Lewis in a pair of tweets on Saturday morning, after Lewis told NBC’s “Meet the Press” he didn’t think Trump was a “legitimate president.”

“Congressman John Lewis should spend more time on fixing and helping his district, which is in horrible shape and falling apart (not to mention crime infested) rather than falsely complaining about the election results. All talk, talk, talk – no action or results. Sad!” Trump said in several tweets.

A number of lawmakers rushed to Lewis’s defense after the criticism from Trump, painting the civil rights icon as a devoted activist and politician.

Lewis had announced that he would not attend Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, joining at least a dozen other Democrats in boycotting the event.