Although politicians on the right and the left called out the President for his response to the Charlottesville, Va. attack — either by name or by denouncing his comments — President Donald Trump decided to lash out against Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) on Twitter Thursday morning.
On Wednesday Graham released a statement denouncing Trump for blaming both “sides” for the violence that broke out at a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville last weekend.
“Through his statements yesterday, President Trump took a step backward by again suggesting there is moral equivalency between the white supremacist neo-Nazis and KKK members who attended the Charlottesville rally and people like Ms. Heyer,” Graham said, referencing the woman, Heather Heyer, who was killed during the rally. “I, along with many others, do not endorse this moral equivalency.”
But the President claims he never made that type of comparison, despite remarks he made to media at a rocky press conference Tuesday, saying “not all of these people were neo-Nazis, believe me.”
He also said people on the “alt-right” and the “alt-left” were to blame for the violence, even though it was a self-proclaimed white supremacist who allegedly drove his car into a crowd of counter-protesters and killing Heyer.
Trump called Graham’s comments a “disgusting lie” and referenced Graham’s reelection in 2020, saying the people of South Carolina “will remember” Graham’s comments.
Publicity seeking Lindsey Graham falsely stated that I said there is moral equivalency between the KKK, neo-Nazis & white supremacists……
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 17, 2017
…and people like Ms. Heyer. Such a disgusting lie. He just can't forget his election trouncing.The people of South Carolina will remember!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 17, 2017
He then blamed the media for misrepresenting “what I say about hate, bigotry, etc. Shame!”
The President’s initial statements about the attack said there was violence on “many sides,” failing to condemn the white supremacist, Ku Klux Klan and neo-Nazis who gathered in the city Saturday. He finally called out the violent groups 48 hours later and then proceeded to blame both sides again the next day.
The public is learning (even more so) how dishonest the Fake News is. They totally misrepresent what I say about hate, bigotry etc. Shame!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 17, 2017
