The chairman of the Republican National Committee called Sunday for Donald Trump supporters to let police handle protesters at his rallies rather than taking matters violently into their own hands.
“Getting involved in confrontations, violence, is not the answer,” Reince Priebus said on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “I think you leave these things up to the professionals.”
Several violent incidents at Trump events have raised questions about the image of the party. Most recently, a video from a Tuscon rally on Saturday night showed a Trump supporter kicking and punching a protester.
Some on Trump’s own payroll have been accused of inciting violence. The businessman’s presidential campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, was accused last week of grabbing a Breitbart reporter, leaving finger-shaped bruises on her arm. At the Tuscon event, Lewandowski can be seen in another video grabbing a protester by the collar.
Priebus said that the Republican party does not “condone” these incidents and that he hasn’t seen Trump encouraging violence at his events.
“Both the campaign side from Donald Trump and everyone else involved has said that violence is not the answer, and it isn’t the answer,” Priebus said.
Trump, however, said earlier this month that he would pay the legal fees of a supporter who punched a protester at one of his events.
