Miss Texas Margana Wood called out President Donald Trump and the recent white supremacist violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, at the 2018 Miss America pageant on Sunday, September 10.
During the Q&A portion of the ceremony, the Houston native, 22, was asked to comment on Trump’s delayed response to the violent protests that occurred in August, in addition to his claim that “very fine people on both sides” were to blame. “I think that the white supremacist issue, it was very obvious that it was a terrorist attack,” Wood replied.
“And I think that President Donald Trump should’ve made a statement earlier addressing the fact, and in making sure all Americans feel safe in this country,” she continued, drawing cheers from the audience. “That is the number one issue right now.”
Many social media users applauded Wood for her response. “When Miss Texas gives a more concise answer about Charlottesville than the President…” one Twitter user wrote. Another echoed, “Miss Texas just gave a stronger answer on White Supremacists than the President of the United States.”
The University of Texas at Austin graduate, who finished as the fourth runner-up, wasn’t the only contestant to tackle political questions during the pageant. Second runner-up Miss New Jersey Kaitlyn Schoeffel said the confederate statues in the U.S. should be “moved to museums,” while first runner-up Miss Missouri Jennifer Davis said she believes Trump, 71, is “innocent” and did not collude with the Russian government in the 2016 presidential election.
Miss North Dakota Cara Mund, who was crowned the new Miss America, also spoke out against the former Celebrity Apprentice host for his controversial decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement. “I do believe it’s a bad decision,” she said. “Once we reject that, we take ourselves out of the negotiation table and that’s something that we really need to keep in mind. There is evidence that climate change is existing, so whether you believe it or not, we need to be at that table, and I think it’s just a bad decision on behalf of the United States.”
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