Trump Calls Roy Cooper “a Fool” as Fact-Checkers Dispute His Prison-Release Claims
President Trump campaigned for Michael Whatley in Greenville, North Carolina, attacking Roy Cooper over a prison-release claim that fact-checkers say state records do not support.
On an airport tarmac in Greenville on Tuesday night, in front of more than 3,000 people, President Donald Trump reached back nearly four decades for his sharpest attack yet on Roy Cooper — and, in The Daily Letter’s reporting of the rally, he called the former governor “a fool.”
Trump was in eastern North Carolina to campaign for Republican Senate nominee Michael Whatley, who faces Cooper for the seat of retiring Republican Sen. Thom Tillis. Reuters reported that polls show Cooper with a commanding lead in a race that could help decide the balance of power in Washington, and The Daily Letter noted Whatley trails by 14 points in one poll.
The centerpiece of Trump’s attack, as Greenville’s Daily Reflector reported from the same rally, was a disputed claim about prisoners. Trump made repeated references to 3,500 state inmates he said North Carolina released in 2021 to settle a lawsuit over COVID-19 prison conditions, and he claimed more than half were re-arrested, including people involved in 25 homicides.
“Cooper conducted a massive jail break that put your lives at risk,” Trump said, according to the Reflector.
Both Trump and Whatley compared Cooper’s actions to those of former Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis, whose 1988 presidential campaign was damaged by attacks over inmate Willie Horton, the Reflector reported. Trump also repeated his promise to give every adult American $5,000 to invest if Republicans keep the House and Senate.
What Fact-Checkers Say About the Release Claim
That prison claim is disputed, and the record is narrower than the rally version. According to PolitiFact, Cooper did consent to the February 25, 2021 settlement, which followed a June 2020 ruling that civil-rights plaintiffs were likely to prevail over COVID-19 prison conditions. PolitiFact also noted that a New York Post analysis put the number later charged with murder at 18 — not 25 killings — and that a WRAL News investigation found the majority of those 18 had completed their terms or were already eligible for parole or scheduled for release independently of the agreement. Cooper’s campaign has denounced similar attacks as “false and misleading.” The Daily Letter likewise reported that state records and fact checks contradict the core of Trump’s attack.
Reuters reported Trump predicted Whatley would prove the doubters wrong — “I think you’re gonna see some amazing results” — even as his approval rating stood at 31% in the Reuters/Ipsos survey.
Supporters at the tarmac heard a governor who, in Trump’s telling, put lives at risk. Cooper’s side points to a court-driven settlement and records that do not match the numbers.
North Carolina voters are now left to decide which version they believe.
Lou Montagna
Lou Montagna brings the heat as Chiefs Blitz's opinion columnist. Never afraid to stir the pot, his editorials on the Chiefs spark debate across Chiefs Kingdom every week.
