White supremacists descended on Charlottesville, Virginia this weekend, spurring a wave of violence that left 19 injured and at least one dead after a car plowed into anti-racist counter-protesters.
Donald Trump, addressing the situation from his private golf club in New Jersey, declined to condemn white nationalism and instead said the blame for the violence lies with “many sides.”
“We condemn in the strongest possible terms this egregious display of hatred, bigotry, and violence on many sides, on many sides. It’s been going on for a long time in our country, not Donald Trump, not Barack Obama, it’s been going on for a long, long time,” Trump said at a previously scheduled event for veterans.
Trump went on to say that he had spoken with Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D-VA), and they agreed that hate and division “must stop” and that Americans must come together with “true affection” for each other. At no point did he condemn white nationalism or white supremacy.
This was also true of Trump’s tweets, which failed to mention what actually prompted the violence.
We ALL must be united & condemn all that hate stands for. There is no place for this kind of violence in America. Lets come together as one!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 12, 2017
Am in Bedminster for meetings & press conference on V.A. & all that we have done, and are doing, to make it better-but Charlottesville sad!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 12, 2017
Other politicians of the president’s party didn’t have issues calling out the people who were responsible.
Nothing patriotic about #Nazis,the #KKK or #WhiteSupremacists It's the direct opposite of what #America seeks to be. #Charlotesville
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) August 12, 2017
My statement on the events in Charlottesville this weekend: pic.twitter.com/68YWWDFk6Z
— Rep. Dave Brat (@RepDaveBrat) August 12, 2017
What " WhiteNatjonalist" are doing in Charlottesville is homegrown terrorism that can't be tolerated anymore that what Any extremist does
— ChuckGrassley (@ChuckGrassley) August 12, 2017
Former KKK grand wizard David Duke, who attended the demonstration, said the goals of the white supremacists were shared by Donald Trump.
Asked what the day represented to him, Duke told the press: “This represents a turning point for the people of this country. We are determined to take our country back, we’re going to fulfill the promises of Donald Trump. That’s what we believed in, that’s why we voted for Donald Trump, because he said he’s going to take our country back, and that’s what we’ve got to do.
David Duke now here in #charlottesville for #altright #unitetheright rally @USATODAY @RbtKing pic.twitter.com/au69sTiTlR
— Mykal McEldowney (@mykalmphoto) August 12, 2017
Two days ago, one of Trump’s top advisors, Sebastian Gorka, argued that people should stop criticizing white supremacists so much.
UPDATE: White House spokesman once again refuses to name white supremacists, emphasizes that Trump was not singling them out for criticism.
Per White House spokesperson pic.twitter.com/jNtzGqmslU
— Ben Jacobs (@Bencjacobs) August 12, 2017