Americans demand leaders who provide clarity of purpose and who reaffirm our strong moral convictions. President Trump’s statement regarding the tragedy in Charlottesville, Va., did neither. He demonstrated both incompetence and weakness regarding the values that matter most to Americans.

Protest and demonstration transformed into tragedy on Saturday as hundreds of white nationalists, neo-Nazis and Ku Klux Klan members stage what they described as a rally to “take America Back.” They clashed with counter-protesters on the streets of Charlottesville. By the end, one civilian was dead and 19 others were injured. Two state police officers also died when their helicopter crashed in the outskirts of the city nestled among the Blue Ridge Mountains and home to the University of Virginia.