Trump Speeches on Unite The Right
Donald Trump's speeches and responses on the Unite the Right rally were were highly polarizing, and gained a large amount of media attention. The speeches also led to the dissolution of the American Manufacturing Council.
First statement
On August 12, Trump spoke on camera from his vacation home in New Jersey, saying "We all must be united and condemn all that hate stands for. There is no place for this kind of violence in America. Let's come together as one!" He said, "we condem in the strongest possible terms this egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides, on many sides." He added, "What is vital now is a swift restoration of law and order." (The statement was re-released after an initial draft released to media outlets such as CNN misspelled "neo-nazi" as "nephew-nazi".)
Because Trump did not specifically denounce white nationalists, white supremacists or neo-Nazis, and the counterprotester side was the only one with any casualties, his "many sides" comment was criticized as insufficient by some members of Congress, from both the Democratic and Republican parties. Whereas members of both political parties condemned the hatred and violence of white nationalists, neo-Nazis and alt-right activists, The New York Times noted that Trump "was the only national political figure to spread blame for the 'hatred, bigotry and violence' that resulted in the death of one person to 'many sides'". The decision was reported to have come from White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon, in fear of repelling alt-right support for the Trump presidency.
The Congressional Black Caucus decried what it saw as Trump's false equivalency and dog-whistle politics, saying "White supremacy is to blame." Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring said: "The violence, chaos, and apparent loss of life in Charlottesville is not the fault of 'many sides.' It is racists and white supremacists." Utah Republican Senator Orrin Hatch, whose brother was killed in action in Europe during World War II, tweeted, "We should call evil by its name. My brother didn't give his life fighting Hitler for Nazi ideas to go unchallenged here at home." Republican senator Cory Gardner called it domestic terrorism in a tweet, and a few hours later Republican senator Ted Cruz wrote on Facebook, "The Nazis, the KKK, and white supremacists are repulsive and evil, and all of us have a moral obligation to speak out against the lies, bigotry, anti-Semitism, and hatred that they propagate." He continued, "Having watched the horrifying video of the car deliberately crashing into a crowd of protesters, I urge the Department of Justice to immediately investigate and prosecute this grotesque act of domestic terrorism."
Former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke responded by saying that Trump should "take a good look in the mirror & remember it was White Americans who put you in the presidency, not radical leftists". Other white supremacists and neo-Nazis did not object to Trump's remarks. Daily Stormer editor Andrew Anglin said "Trump did the opposite of cuck. He refused to even mention anything to do with us. When reporters were screaming at him about White Nationalism he just walked out of the room."
The NAACP released a statement saying that while they "acknowledge and appreciate President Trump's disavowment of the hatred which has resulted in a loss of life today", they call on Trump "to take the tangible step to remove Steve Bannon - a well-known white supremacist leader - from his team of advisers". The statement further describes Bannon as a "symbol of white nationalism" who "energizes that sentiment" through his current position within the White House. Political scientist Larry Sabato, playwright Beau Willimon, conservative journalist David A. French, actor Mark Ruffalo, also called for Bannon's firing. Political commentator Symone Sanders and two former federal government lawyers, Vanita Gupta and Richard Painter, who worked in the administrations of Barack Obama and George W. Bush respectively, called for both Bannon and Deputy Assistant to the President Sebastian Gorka to be fired. The Congressional Progressive Caucus and U.S. Representative Bill Pascrell called on Trump to fire Senior Advisor to the President Stephen Miller in addition to Bannon and Gorka.
Second statement
On August 14, from the White House, President Trump said:
Trump had reportedly been reluctant to issue this statement, believing that his initial statement was adequate, but he was persuaded to speak again by White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly.
Richard B. Spencer dismissed Trump's second statement as "hollow" and he also said that he believed that Trump had not denounced either the alt-right movement or white nationalism. South Carolina Senator Tim Scott (one of three African Americans serving in the U.S. Senate, and the only Republican among the three), also said that the firmer second statement came too late; the Los Angeles Times editorial board wrote that "Trump's first response to Charlottesville was tepid and mealy mouthed. His second was too late." NAACP president Cornell William Brooks said Trump's second statement stuck to a "rhetorical minimum" of a condemnation, and "gave the impression that the President was trying to have his hate cake and eat it too".
Trump later tweeted "Made additional remarks on Charlottesville and realize once again that the #Fake News Media will never be satisfied...truly bad people!"
Third statement
On August 15, Trump appeared before the media from his home at Trump Tower in New York City, to give prepared remarks about the state of the U.S. infrastructure and other economic issues; the conclusive Q&A part of the press conference was mainly about the Charlottesville events. He defended his August 12 statement and again said that there was "blame on both sides." He also defended his advisor Steve Bannon, and accused the media of unfair treatment of the rally′s participants. Trump said: "Not all of those people were neo-Nazis, believe me. Not all of those people were white supremacists by any stretch." Trump also said that there were "very fine people on both sides". Trump criticized what he called the "very, very violent″ alt-left, a group that, he said, ″came charging in without a permit″. He also said that the push to remove Confederate statues was an attempt to ″change history″.
Analysis
Congress
More than 60 Republican and Democratic members of Congress condemned Trump's remarks in the press conference. Among those criticizing Trump were Senators Bernie Sanders, John McCain, Tim Scott, Susan Collins, Chuck Schumer, Cory Booker, Elizabeth Warren, Jeff Flake, Orrin Hatch, Heidi Heitkamp, Claire McCaskill, Dean Heller and Tammy Duckworth, and House members , Don Beyer, Barbara Comstock, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Will Hurd and Gerry Connolly, as well as Ohio Governor John Kasich and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney). House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said, "The president's continued talk of blame 'on many sides' ignores the abhorrent evil of white supremacism..." Speaker of the House Paul Ryan stated, "We must be clear. White supremacy is repulsive. This bigotry is counter to all this country stands for. There can be no moral ambiguity."
On August 16, Representatives Jerrold Nadler of New York, Pramila Jayapal of Washington State and Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey unveiled a resolution that the three House Democrats co-authored, which would censure Trump for his "inadequate response to the violence," his "failure to immediately and specifically name and condemn the white supremacist groups responsible for actions of domestic terrorism," and for employing chief strategist Steve Bannon and national security aide Sebastian Gorka despite their “ties to white supremacist movements.”
Historians and scholars
According to Princeton University historian Kevin M. Kruse, there is a historical "false equivalency" precedent to blaming "both sides" in disputes over race relations. Kruse notes that segregationist politicians often equated white supremacists with the civil rights movement, condemning both the KKK and the NAACP. Various historians also questioned Trump's suggestion that the individuals calling for the removal of confederate monuments would next demand the removal of figures like George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. Harvard historian Annette Gordon-Reed noted that Washington and Jefferson were imperfect men who are notable for creating the United States, whereas the sole historical significance of figures such as Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis is that they went to war with the United States.<ref name=":2" /> Other historians noted that some wanted the confederate monuments moved to museums where the monuments could be appropriately contextualized.<ref name=":2" />
First statement
On August 12, Trump spoke on camera from his vacation home in New Jersey, saying "We all must be united and condemn all that hate stands for. There is no place for this kind of violence in America. Let's come together as one!" He said, "we condem in the strongest possible terms this egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides, on many sides." He added, "What is vital now is a swift restoration of law and order." (The statement was re-released after an initial draft released to media outlets such as CNN misspelled "neo-nazi" as "nephew-nazi".)
Because Trump did not specifically denounce white nationalists, white supremacists or neo-Nazis, and the counterprotester side was the only one with any casualties, his "many sides" comment was criticized as insufficient by some members of Congress, from both the Democratic and Republican parties. Whereas members of both political parties condemned the hatred and violence of white nationalists, neo-Nazis and alt-right activists, The New York Times noted that Trump "was the only national political figure to spread blame for the 'hatred, bigotry and violence' that resulted in the death of one person to 'many sides'". The decision was reported to have come from White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon, in fear of repelling alt-right support for the Trump presidency.
The Congressional Black Caucus decried what it saw as Trump's false equivalency and dog-whistle politics, saying "White supremacy is to blame." Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring said: "The violence, chaos, and apparent loss of life in Charlottesville is not the fault of 'many sides.' It is racists and white supremacists." Utah Republican Senator Orrin Hatch, whose brother was killed in action in Europe during World War II, tweeted, "We should call evil by its name. My brother didn't give his life fighting Hitler for Nazi ideas to go unchallenged here at home." Republican senator Cory Gardner called it domestic terrorism in a tweet, and a few hours later Republican senator Ted Cruz wrote on Facebook, "The Nazis, the KKK, and white supremacists are repulsive and evil, and all of us have a moral obligation to speak out against the lies, bigotry, anti-Semitism, and hatred that they propagate." He continued, "Having watched the horrifying video of the car deliberately crashing into a crowd of protesters, I urge the Department of Justice to immediately investigate and prosecute this grotesque act of domestic terrorism."
Former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke responded by saying that Trump should "take a good look in the mirror & remember it was White Americans who put you in the presidency, not radical leftists". Other white supremacists and neo-Nazis did not object to Trump's remarks. Daily Stormer editor Andrew Anglin said "Trump did the opposite of cuck. He refused to even mention anything to do with us. When reporters were screaming at him about White Nationalism he just walked out of the room."
The NAACP released a statement saying that while they "acknowledge and appreciate President Trump's disavowment of the hatred which has resulted in a loss of life today", they call on Trump "to take the tangible step to remove Steve Bannon - a well-known white supremacist leader - from his team of advisers". The statement further describes Bannon as a "symbol of white nationalism" who "energizes that sentiment" through his current position within the White House. Political scientist Larry Sabato, playwright Beau Willimon, conservative journalist David A. French, actor Mark Ruffalo, also called for Bannon's firing. Political commentator Symone Sanders and two former federal government lawyers, Vanita Gupta and Richard Painter, who worked in the administrations of Barack Obama and George W. Bush respectively, called for both Bannon and Deputy Assistant to the President Sebastian Gorka to be fired. The Congressional Progressive Caucus and U.S. Representative Bill Pascrell called on Trump to fire Senior Advisor to the President Stephen Miller in addition to Bannon and Gorka.
Second statement
On August 14, from the White House, President Trump said:
Trump had reportedly been reluctant to issue this statement, believing that his initial statement was adequate, but he was persuaded to speak again by White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly.
Richard B. Spencer dismissed Trump's second statement as "hollow" and he also said that he believed that Trump had not denounced either the alt-right movement or white nationalism. South Carolina Senator Tim Scott (one of three African Americans serving in the U.S. Senate, and the only Republican among the three), also said that the firmer second statement came too late; the Los Angeles Times editorial board wrote that "Trump's first response to Charlottesville was tepid and mealy mouthed. His second was too late." NAACP president Cornell William Brooks said Trump's second statement stuck to a "rhetorical minimum" of a condemnation, and "gave the impression that the President was trying to have his hate cake and eat it too".
Trump later tweeted "Made additional remarks on Charlottesville and realize once again that the #Fake News Media will never be satisfied...truly bad people!"
Third statement
On August 15, Trump appeared before the media from his home at Trump Tower in New York City, to give prepared remarks about the state of the U.S. infrastructure and other economic issues; the conclusive Q&A part of the press conference was mainly about the Charlottesville events. He defended his August 12 statement and again said that there was "blame on both sides." He also defended his advisor Steve Bannon, and accused the media of unfair treatment of the rally′s participants. Trump said: "Not all of those people were neo-Nazis, believe me. Not all of those people were white supremacists by any stretch." Trump also said that there were "very fine people on both sides". Trump criticized what he called the "very, very violent″ alt-left, a group that, he said, ″came charging in without a permit″. He also said that the push to remove Confederate statues was an attempt to ″change history″.
Analysis
Congress
More than 60 Republican and Democratic members of Congress condemned Trump's remarks in the press conference. Among those criticizing Trump were Senators Bernie Sanders, John McCain, Tim Scott, Susan Collins, Chuck Schumer, Cory Booker, Elizabeth Warren, Jeff Flake, Orrin Hatch, Heidi Heitkamp, Claire McCaskill, Dean Heller and Tammy Duckworth, and House members , Don Beyer, Barbara Comstock, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Will Hurd and Gerry Connolly, as well as Ohio Governor John Kasich and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney). House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said, "The president's continued talk of blame 'on many sides' ignores the abhorrent evil of white supremacism..." Speaker of the House Paul Ryan stated, "We must be clear. White supremacy is repulsive. This bigotry is counter to all this country stands for. There can be no moral ambiguity."
On August 16, Representatives Jerrold Nadler of New York, Pramila Jayapal of Washington State and Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey unveiled a resolution that the three House Democrats co-authored, which would censure Trump for his "inadequate response to the violence," his "failure to immediately and specifically name and condemn the white supremacist groups responsible for actions of domestic terrorism," and for employing chief strategist Steve Bannon and national security aide Sebastian Gorka despite their “ties to white supremacist movements.”
Historians and scholars
According to Princeton University historian Kevin M. Kruse, there is a historical "false equivalency" precedent to blaming "both sides" in disputes over race relations. Kruse notes that segregationist politicians often equated white supremacists with the civil rights movement, condemning both the KKK and the NAACP. Various historians also questioned Trump's suggestion that the individuals calling for the removal of confederate monuments would next demand the removal of figures like George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. Harvard historian Annette Gordon-Reed noted that Washington and Jefferson were imperfect men who are notable for creating the United States, whereas the sole historical significance of figures such as Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis is that they went to war with the United States.<ref name=":2" /> Other historians noted that some wanted the confederate monuments moved to museums where the monuments could be appropriately contextualized.<ref name=":2" />
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