President Donald Trump is more directly condemning white supremacists.
The president called into Fox News’ “Hannity” on Thursday evening where he denounced white supremacists, the Ku Klux Klan, and the far-right group Proud Boys.
“I’ve said it many times, and let me be clear again: I condemn the [Ku Klux Klan]. I condemn all white supremacists. I condemn the Proud Boys. I don’t know much about the Proud Boys, almost nothing,” Trump said. “But I condemn that.”
Trump then called on Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden to condemn Antifa. Biden called violence never “appropriate” during Tuesday’s presidential debate in Ohio but said Antifa is “an idea, not an organization.”
Listen to Trump’s remarks below:
Antifa is “short for anti-fascist” and is “used to define a broad group of people whose political beliefs lean toward the left — often the far left — but do not conform with the Democratic Party platform,” as CNN reported. Proud Boys “represent an unconventional strain of American right-wing extremism,” as the Anti-Defamation League wrote on its website.
Trump’s remarks on Fox News come after he avoided directly condemning white supremacists or militia groups during the first presidential debate on Tuesday, as IJR reported.
Asked by Fox News’ Chris Wallace, the moderator, if he is “willing tonight, to condemn white supremacists and militia groups and to say that they need to stand down,” Trump responded, “Sure,” adding, “I would say almost everything I see is from the left-wing. Not from the right-wing. I’m willing to do anything, I want to see peace.”
Trump also said, “Proud Boys, stand back and stand by. But I’ll tell you what, somebody’s got to do something about Antifa and the left. Because this is not a right-wing problem.”
In case you missed it:
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Trump’s comments telling the Proud Boys to “stand back and stand by” sparked a social media firestorm. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) also weighed in as she said the day after the debate that she “lost a lot of sleep” over “that one fact.”
White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany even sparred with reporters during Thursday’s press briefing when pressed on the president’s record of condemning white supremacy, as IJR reported.