Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe (D) was a vocal critic of President Trump’s response to the violence in Charlottesville committed by white supremacists that killed one woman and injured dozens more. However, the Democratic Governor has refused to explicitly denounce the violence committed by Antifa, where both Trump supporters and journalists were assaulted on Sunday in Berkeley, California.
Over a dozen people were arrested, and five were injured when anti-fascists showed up and violently disrupted a peaceful conservative “Rally Against Hate” demonstration at Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Center park on Sunday afternoon.
Contrary to their extensive criticism of the President, Democrats seem to be having a tough time responding to Sunday’s attack on conservatives. Following the deadly protests in Charlottesville, President Trump was criticized for not directly condemning white supremacist groups by name. The President initially said that there were violence and hatred displayed ‘on many sides.’ People were outraged at Trump for implying that ‘Antifa’ was in any way responsible for the violence.
After Charlottesville, McAuliffe told NPR that “elected officials need to come out, No. 1, and condemn” the groups and “call it for what it is.”
The Independent Journal Review asked Gov. McAuliffe to respond to the Antifa attacks in California. The governor didn’t follow his own advice.
“I disavow anyone — we won’t tolerate violence of any kind. You’re entitled to protest. First Amendment certainly protected. As I’ve said after Charlottesville, anyone who came to our state, anyone who committed violence, on any side, will be arrested. […] Everybody’s entitled to do their protest but were not going to accept violence from anybody,” McAuliffe said.
When he was pressed and asked if he would denounce the group by name, the governor wouldn’t and told the reporter he only denounces individuals, not groups.
“Here’s what I do as governor, I denounce any individual who commits a crime, who commits violence on our citizens. We will get you, and we will arrest you, plain and simple. I don’t care what the group is,” McAuliffe said.
