As Barcelona, Spain reeled from an attack on Thursday that left 13 people dead and dozens more injured, President Donald Trump quickly took to Twitter to both denounce the attack and recount a “vile” myth that claims a U.S. general—though the story has been thoroughly debunked—executed 49 Muslims with bullets drenched in pig’s blood.

The fact that the story isn’t true never stopped Trump from parading it around on the campaign trail.

But the significant point is not that the story is apocryphal, many pointed out—it is that the story is “bigoted” and “vicious nonsense.”

“Yes, it’s false,” wrote MSNBC justice and security analyst Matthew Miller.

“But [it’s] more important that [the president of the United States] is talking about executing Muslims without trial with bullets coated in pigs blood. Appalling.”

Though Trump insisted that he needed “the facts” before speaking about the white supremacist violence in Charlottesville, Virginia last weekend, this concern was quickly dropped by the president in the case of Spain, where the attackers may have been motivated by Islamic extremism.

“Trump is celebrating torture and mass executions here. This isn’t law and order—it’s war crimes,” wrote filmmaker Adam Best.

“The Donald is clinging to the phrase ‘radical Islamic terror’ to avoid talking about white supremacist terrorism. So transparent.”

Others reacted similarly:

https://twitter.com/FridaGhitis/status/898259014743490560

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