"Senate Republicans spent much of Wednesday pressing President Donald Trump to denounce white supremacy, with few in the GOP willing to explicitly defend his refusal to do so during Tuesday’s presidential debate.
"Given a direct opportunity by moderator Chris Wallace to condemn the nation’s domestic terrorist groups, Trump instead told them to 'stand back and stand by,' prompting far-right groups like the Proud Boys to quickly seize on the comments.
"Trump attempted to clean up his remarks Wednesday afternoon after the barrage of criticism, saying he did not know who the Proud Boys are but that 'they need to stand down.' However, it was far from the clear denunciation members of his party had been seeking.
"In a series of interviews and public statements Wednesday, Senate Republicans pushed Trump to clarify his comments, with party leaders and the rank-and-file eager to put distance between themselves and the president’s stance.
"Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said that he shared the same views as Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), the only black GOP senator, who urged the president to correct his comments.
“'He said it was unacceptable not to condemn white supremacy,' McConnell said. 'And so, I do so in the strongest possible way.' Scott on Wednesday suggested the president may have misspoken but added: 'If he doesn't correct it — I guess he didn't misspeak.'
"GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham, a close Trump ally, also aligned himself with his South Carolina colleague, tweeting that he agrees with 'President Trump needing to make it clear Proud Boys is a racist organization antithetical to American ideals.'
"The president's refusal to rebuke hate groups once again dragged his history of racist remarks back into the national spotlight, creating another unwelcome headache for Senate Republicans as they try to keep their majority in November. The comments are poised to become one of the few crystallizing moments from a debate otherwise marred by bickering, cross talk and personal insults.
"But McConnell said Trump’s performance in the debate wouldn’t hurt his efforts to keep the Senate: 'I don’t know of any of my colleagues who will have problems as a result of that.'
"Senate Majority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.) said Wednesday that Trump seemed to believe he'd already condemned white supremacy: 'In his mind he did.' But Thune prodded Trump to 'clear it up.'
"Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) said Trump should 'unequivocally condemn white supremacy,' while Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) , a frequent critic of the president, responded that 'of course' Trump should have denounced white supremacists.
"Other GOP senators did not criticize Trump directly, but instead reiterated their own personal denunciation of white supremacy.
"'I condemn white supremacy, all extremist groups. I think that all of these groups are equal, and I condemn them on the strongest terms and we need to remain one nation under God,' said Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.).
"Some GOP lawmakers came to Trump’s defense.
"House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and Sen Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.), argued that the president said recently he would designate the KKK a terrorist organization."
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