President Trump said he didn’t immediately single out white supremacists for violence in Charlottesville, Va., because he wants to know all of the facts before making a statement.
Trump initially blamed “many sides” for the Saturday violence that ended in murder, but after substantial criticism on Monday specifically condemned “this weekend’s racist violence.”
“Unlike a lot of reporters, I wanted to see the facts,” Trump said in response to reporter questions at Trump Tower in New York. Trump said he issued a “fast statement” condemning the violence in general as he waited to learn specifics.
“I didn’t know all of the facts,” Trump said.
As exchanges with reporters grew tense, Trump appeared to defend the veracity of his initial controversial statement.
“I think there is blame on both sides and I have no doubt about it and you don’t have any doubt about it either,” he said.
“What about the alt-left that came charging at, as you say, at the alt-right? Do they have any assemblage of guilt?” he said, describing people who protested the white nationalist gathering in opposition to the planned removal of a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.
Anti-racism activists “came charging in without a permit and they were very violent,” he said.
In addition to casting blame on both factions, Trump said “you had people that were very fine people on both sides” and said some opponents of the Lee statute removal were neither neo-Nazis or white supremacists.
A state of emergency was declared after violent clashes on Saturday. As participants of the rally and counterprotest dispersed a car driven by a white supremacist plowed into a crowd of counter-protesters, killing 32-year-old Heather Heyer, according to police.
The driver of the car, 20-year-old James Fields “is a disgrace to himself, his family and his country,” Trump said.
