President-elect Donald Trump took Twitter aim at Georgia Democratic Representative and civil rights icon John Lewis early Saturday morning after the congressman called the soon-to-be 45th president of the United States illegitimate.
‘‘You know, I believe in forgiveness. I believe in trying to work with people. It will be hard. It’s going to be very difficult. I don’t see this president-elect as a legitimate president,’’ Lewis said in an interview with NBC’s ‘‘Meet the Press’’ that will air on Sunday.
‘‘I think the Russians participated in helping this man get elected. And they helped destroy the candidacy of Hillary Clinton,” he said.
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Using the 140-character platform, Trump insisted that Lewis is “all talk, talk, talk - no action or results” and should “spend more time on fixing and helping his district.”
Congressman John Lewis should spend more time on fixing and helping his district, which is in horrible shape and falling apart (not to......
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 14, 2017
mention crime infested) rather than falsely complaining about the election results. All talk, talk, talk - no action or results. Sad!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 14, 2017
Lewis said he would skip Trump’s inauguration in the NBC interview. Lewis is among several lawmakers, all Democratic, who said they won’t attend the inauguration. Among them is Katherine Clark of Massachusetts.
He said Friday’s inauguration would be the first he has missed in three decades.
Lewis entered national politics in the 1960s; he was one of the original freedom riders. He coordinated the 1963 March on Washington with other civil rights leaders, including Martin Luther King Jr., who gave his famous “I Have a Dream” speech there. Lewis was beaten by the police in Selma, Ala., in 1965 when he crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge as part of a planned march from Selma to Montgomery. In 2011, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Last year, he shared the National Book Award for a trilogy of graphic novels titled “March” about his civil rights activism.
The federal holiday commemorating the life of Martin Luther King Jr. is Monday.
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Trump was criticized by both the right and left for his comments.
On this Martin Luther King Jr. weekend, let it be clear that John Lewis is an American patriot. Trump's attacks on him further confirm it. pic.twitter.com/WavPT36Atu
— Evan McMullin (@EvanMcMullin) January 14, 2017
John Lewis and his "talk" have changed the world.https://t.co/qeUloAkeTx https://t.co/aH2vDLjKk9
— Ben Sasse (@BenSasse) January 14, 2017
It's telling, I'm afraid, that Donald Trump treats Vladimir Putin with more respect than he does John Lewis.
— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) January 14, 2017
"If you see something that is not right, not fair, not just, you have a moral obligation to do something about it."-John Lewis #GoodTrouble pic.twitter.com/9jmQiyxvNQ
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) January 14, 2017
People in Lewis’s district shared photos disputing Trump’s charge that it is in “horrible shape.”
.@realDonaldTrump "Horrible"? We love our home in #GA5, our Atlanta neighbors and our @repjohnlewis!!! pic.twitter.com/eFjVIfoEFf
— Lauren Shay Lavin (@ShayLavin) January 14, 2017
Material from the Associated Press was used in this report. Aimee Ortiz can be reached at aimee.ortiz@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @aimee_ortiz. Heather Ciras can be reached at heather.ciras@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @heatherciras.