USA Today
By David Jackson
February 29, 2016
Donald
Trump declined repeated invitations Sunday to disavow the support of
former Ku Klux Klan grand wizard David Duke — even though he did just
that on Friday.
"I
don't know anything about David Duke, OK?" Trump said on CNN's State of
the Union. "I don't know anything about what you're even talking about
with white supremacy
or white supremacists. So, I don't know."
After
the broadcast, amid a torrent of criticism, Trump tweeted out his
answer to a similar question during a Friday news conference — he said
then he didn't know about
Duke's endorsement, but "I disavow, OK?"
This is somewhat in contrast to his stance in 2000, the year Trump declined a presidential bid for the Reform Party.
As
Buzzfeed noted, Trump sent out a statement that year that “the Reform
Party now includes a Klansman, Mr. Duke, a neo-Nazi, Mr. (Pat) Buchanan,
and a communist, Ms.
(Lenora) Fulani. This is not company I wish to keep.”
This
year, the Anti-Defamation League and other groups have called on the
Republican front-runner to condemn the support of Duke.
Trump
on CNN Sunday: "I know nothing about David Duke. I know nothing about
white supremacists. And so you're asking me a question that I'm
supposed to be talking about
people that I know nothing about."
With
Donald Trump looking strong in Super Tuesday polling, reports say some
Republicans are turning toward the front-runner while others vow to
fight. Video provided by
Newsy Newslook
Pressed
by State of the Union host Jake Tapper, Trump said: "You wouldn't want
me to condemn a group that I know nothing about. I would have to look.
If you would send
me a list of the groups, I will do research on them. And, certainly, I
would disavow if I thought there was something wrong."
On
his radio program, Duke recently told his listeners that supporting
someone other than Trump is "really treason to your heritage."
Trump's
rivals blasted the GOP front-runner's refusal to distance himself from
Duke on Sunday. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz called Trump's responses "really
sad," adding that the
New York billionaire was "better than this."
Florida
Sen. Marco Rubio, addressing Trump's comments, said at a Virginia
rally: "Not only is that wrong, it makes him unelectable. How are we
going to grow our party
with a nominee that refuses to condemn the Ku Klux Klan? Don't tell me
he doesn't know who the Ku Klux Klan is."
Ohio Gov. John Kasich tweeted that "hate groups have no place in America."
Vermont
Sen. Bernie Sanders, who's seeking the Democratic nomination, also
slammed Trump on Tuesday, tweeting that the nation's "first black
president cannot and will
not be succeeded by a hatemonger who refuses to condemn the KKK."
Among those retweeting Sanders' tweet was his rival in the Democratic race, Hillary Clinton.
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