House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said President Trump was clear in his condemnation of white supremacy during Tuesday night’s presidential debate, despite next-day accusations, even from some Republicans, that his answer showed support for such groups or lacked clarity.
“You heard what the president said, ‘Yes.’ Would you denounce? What did the president say? ‘Yes. Yes, I will,’” McCarthy, a California Republican and staunch supporter of Trump, told reporters Wednesday. “How many times does he have to say it?”
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While Trump supporters criticized moderator Chris Wallace of Fox News for asking the question, which Trump has answered repeatedly during his presidency, some Senate Republicans were disappointed with his answer.
“I was hoping for more clarity,” Sen. Mike Rounds, a South Dakota Republican, told reporters, adding that he did not watch the debate live but viewed highlights.
Rounds said Trump “should have made it very clear that there’s no room for people on the far left or the far right when it comes to either Antifa, or these white supremacist groups.”
Sen. Todd Young, an Indiana Republican who is head of the Senate GOP fundraising arm, said the debate performances by both candidates muddled their agendas and messages.
“We didn’t get great clarity from the debate last night about the differences in vision for the future of this country, and I did think that was unfortunate,” Young told reporters.
Young said he condemns “white supremacy, all extremist groups,” but did not directly criticize Trump’s response to Wallace.
Trump told Wallace he would condemn white supremacist groups, including antifa groups who have been rioting in cities across America, burning and looting businesses and perpetuating violence.
When Democratic nominee Joe Biden asked Trump to condemn the Proud Boys, a white supremacist group, Trump 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.”
Sen. Tim Scott, a South Carolina Republican and one of three black U.S. senators currently, said Trump should clarify what he meant.
“I think he misspoke in response to Chris Wallace’s comment,” Scott told reporters. “He was asking Chris what he wanted to say. I think he misspoke, I think he should correct it. If he doesn’t correct it I guess he didn’t misspeak.”
