US President Donald Trump has denounced the driver of the car that smashed into a crowd of protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia. He also defended his top adviser Steve Bannon and challenged media for not reporting on the violence fully.
Trump, who was in New York to announce a new executive initiative on infrastructure, took questions from the media about Saturday’s events in Charlottesville, when one person was killed and 19 were injured when a car reportedly driven by one of the participants in the right-wing rally ran into a crowd.
“I wanted to make sure, unlike most politicians, that the statement I made was correct,” Trump said, when reporters asked him why he waited until Monday to denounce neo-Nazis and the Ku Klux Klan members present at the rally.
“Unlike you, unlike the media, before I make a statement I like to know the facts,” he added.
Trump described Heather Heyer, who was killed in the incident, as “an incredible young woman,” and the driver of the car as “a disgrace to himself, his family and his country.”
“The driver of the car is a murderer, and what he did is a horrible, inexcusable thing,” the president added.
Asked about his chief strategist Stephen Bannon, whom the Democrats and some media have accused of supporting white nationalism, the president called him a friend.
“He is not a racist, I can tell you that. He’s a good person,” Trump said. “I think the press treats him very unfairly.”
Via RT. This piece was reprinted by RINF Alternative News with permission or license.