Donald Trump claims he does not know who Proud Boys are after refusing to condemn group during election debate

US President tells reporters he has always denounced white supremacist groups and re-stresses the need for “law and order” in the US
David Child1 October 2020

US President Donald Trump has claimed he does not know who the Proud Boys are in a bid to backtrack over controversial comments made during his first election debate.

Mr Trump was widely criticised after failing to condemn the far-right group, who have clashed violently with far-left demonstrators, during his head-to-head with Joe Biden on Wednesday.

Following backlash over his comments, Mr Trump tried to distance himself from the group, claiming he did not know who they were and saying they had to "let law enforcement do their work".

“I don’t know who Proud Boys are," he told reporters as he left the White House for a campaign stop in Minnesota. "But whoever they are they have to stand down, let law enforcement do their work."

Mr Trump had been asked during the event in Cleveland on Tuesday if he would instruct the male-only group of neo-fascists to obey the direction of law enforcement. He replied: “Proud Boys, stand back and stand by."

"But I’ll tell you what, somebody’s got to do something about antifa and the left,” he added, citing the largely unstructured, far-left movement whose followers broadly aim to confront those they view as authoritarian or racist.

Mr Trump's remarks were viewed as emboldening the group, who have clashed violently with far-left demonstrators amid widespread unrest in the US in recent months.

Proud Boys leaders and supporters took to social media to celebrate the president’s comments at the debate, with more than 5,000 of the group’s members posting “Stand Back” and “Stand By” above and below the group’s logo.

The president went on call out forces on the other end of the political spectrum and tried to attack Mr Biden, echoing how he blamed “both sides” for the 2017 violence between white supremacists and anti-racist protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia.

He said on Wednesday: “Now antifa is a real problem. The problem is on the left. And Biden refuses to talk about it.”

In fact, FBI Director Christopher Wray told a congressional panel last week that it was white supremacists and anti-government extremists who have been responsible for most of the recent deadly attacks by extremist groups in the US.

When asked directly on Wednesday about denouncing white supremacist groups, Mr Trump, who has a long history of making comments that his critics view as racist or as supportive of racist groups, said he had always done so and again stressed the need for “law and order” in the US.

"Law enforcement will do the work more and more as people see how bad this radical liberal Democrat movement is and how weak, the law enforcement is going to come back stronger and stronger," he said.

"Law and order is a very important part of my campaign."

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