GOP activists scold Republicans for criticizing Trump over Charlottesville [View all]
Source: MSN/Tribune News Service
WASHINGTON _ The Republican base is fiercely defending Donald Trump's response to a violent white nationalist rally, arguing that the president's dayslong refusal to explicitly condemn white supremacists and neo-Nazis is a matter of splitting hairs.
Trump has faced enormous backlash from his own party's leaders for being slow to condemn the neo-Nazis and white-power groups who gathered this weekend in Charlottesville, Va., suggesting an increased willingness among Washington Republicans to break with an administration whose support among base voters has so far kept lawmakers in line.
But interviews with GOP strategists and local officials from across the country reveal that many Republicans outside of Washington think Trump addressed the situation adequately. His approach certainly has not prompted these conservatives to reconsider their support.
"The president's statements were unequivocal in opposing hatred, and so his statements were in line with the Republican base on this," said Virginia GOP Chairman John Whitbeck. "I don't see any scenario where grass-roots conservatives are sitting there picking apart the president's every word and rethinking support for him."
Read more: http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/gop-activists-scold-republicans-for-criticizing-trump-over-charlottesville/ar-AAq5BWY?li=BBnb7Kz
Chickens come home to roost. After decades of dog whistles, the GOP has become a bastion of white supremacists.
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