Trump unites the nation
Comments appal all sides of politics
IN the wake of high-profile tragedies, it is routine for American Presidents to make speeches that seek to unite the nation.
Donald Trump has done just that following the deadly racial violence in Charlottesville at the weekend – only this time the unity is in total opposition to his comments.
Yesterday, at an impromptu press conference in the lobby of his Manhattan home and corporate headquarters, Mr Trump infuriated Republicans, Democrats and business leaders alike by insisting neo-Nazis were not solely to blame for the mayhem.
“There is blame on both sides, and I have no doubt about it,” Mr Trump said of the violent clashes between white supremacists and counter-protesters in the Southern college town.
“You had a group on one side that was bad and you had a group on the other side that was also very violent, and nobody wants to say that but I’ll say it right now.
“What about the alt left that came charging at, as you say, at the alt right? Do they have any guilt?
“What about the fact that they came charging with clubs in their hands, swinging clubs? You had a group on the other side that came charging in without a permit and they were very, very violent.”
Mr Trump’s combative comments were greeted with dismay by senior Republicans, with some of Mr Trump’s most loyal supporters speaking out.
“We must be clear. White supremacy is repulsive,” the Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan said soon afterwards.
“This bigotry is counter to all this country stands for. There can be no moral ambiguity.”
The remarks were, however, welcomed by one person – the former leader of the Ku Klux Klan. “Thank you President Trump for your honesty and courage to tell the truth,” David Duke tweeted.
Some Democrats said they could no longer consider Mr Trump their president.
“As a Jew, as an American, as a human, words cannot express my disgust and disappointment,” Hawaii senator Brian Schatz said.
“This is not my president.” Mr Trump also struggled to answer the question of whether Saturday’s car attack in Charlottesville, which killed 32-year-old Heather Heyer, was terrorism.
“There is a question. Is it murder? Is it terrorism?” Mr Trump said.
“And then you get into legal semantics. The driver of the car is a murderer and what he did was a horrible, horrible, inexcusable thing.”