Trump backtracks, says he condemns all white supremacists including ‘Proud Boys’ following controversy over debate comments

President Donald Trump said on Thursday he condemned all white supremacists including the “Proud Boys,” an organisation identified as a hate group, following comments he made in the first presidential debate earlier this week that were viewed as emboldening the group.

“I condemn all white supremacists, I condemn the Proud Boys. I don’t know much about the Proud Boys but I condemn that,” Trump told Fox News in an interview.

During his debate with Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden on Tuesday, Trump was asked if he was willing to denounce “white supremacists and militia groups” and tell them to stand down amid violence that has marred anti-racism protests in some U.S. cities.

Trump requested a specific name, and Biden mentioned the Proud Boys, an organisation that describes itself as a club of “Western chauvinists” but has been categorised as a hate group by the nonprofit Southern Poverty Law Center.

“Proud Boys, stand back and stand by,” Trump said. The comment drew wide criticism and was viewed by many to be a sign of encouragement to the group.

Republican U.S. Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, who is Black, said Trump misspoke and called on him to correct his words.

On Wednesday, Trump told reporters at the White House: “I don’t know who the Proud Boys are,” adding, “They have to stand down. Let law enforcement do their work.”

The president has a long history of making comments that his critics view as racist or as supportive of racist groups.

In 2017, he said “both sides” were to blame for violence between white supremacists and counter-protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia. He later sought to walk back the comments.

Trump called on Biden to condemn antifa, a largely unstructured, far-left movement whose followers broadly aim to confront those they view as authoritarian or racist.

SOURCE: REUTERS