On Tuesday, President Trump insisted that both left and right-wing groups used force in the aftermath of a white supremacist rally. Additionally, he stated that all of the facts about the street clashes in Charlottesville, Virginia have not yet been accumulated.
The interview took place in the lobby of Trump Tower in New York, and the president seemed to revert to his original comments on Saturday, blaming “many sides” for the violence. However, on Monday, Trump had explicitly condemned white supremacist groups, neo-Nazis and the Ku Klux Klan.
“They came at each other with clubs… it was a horrible thing to watch,” Trump told reporters. Further, he stated that left-wing protesters “came violently attacking the other group.”
The press conference also included Trump becoming agitated with reporters, asking one to define “alt right”, and asking another whether or not they liked Thomas Jefferson and George Washington, referring to the fact that the two former Presidents owned slaves.
To no surprise, Trump has been the subject of criticism from both Democrats and members of the Republican Party over his initial remarks about the violence in the Southern college town. And on Tuesday, his comments commenced a new round of outrage.
“Blaming ‘both sides’ for #Charlottesville?! No. Back to relativism when dealing with KKK, Nazi sympathizers, white supremacists? Just no,” Republican Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen posted on Twitter.
Featured Image: twitter
