Bonamici: President’s Comments about Charlottesville are ‘Abhorrent’

BEAVERTON, OR [08/16/17] — Today Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) issued the following statement after President Trump's latest remarks about this weekend's events in Charlottesville.

"The President's remarks suggesting support for the neo-Nazi rally in Charlottesville are abhorrent. He blamed ‘both sides,' but there is only one side—the side of those standing against hate, racism, and anti-Semitism. We cannot stand by as President Trump emboldens hate groups, including neo-Nazis, white supremacists, and the Ku Klux Klan. Since taking office, he has appointed staff members, including Steve Bannon, Stephen Miller, and Sebastian Gorka, who have advanced anti-Semitic and racist policies. He has used his own Twitter account to call for violence against journalists, and to bully political adversaries. And now, he has said the white supremacist protesters in Charlottesville included ‘very fine people.' To my colleagues in the majority, there is no longer any excuse to support this man as he degrades the presidency and the rule of law. I call on all members of Congress to consider very seriously what we are normalizing by allowing this behavior to continue."

Congresswoman Bonamici has repeatedly fought back against President Trump. Earlier this week, she joined Rep. Pramila Jayapal and a group of her colleagues in condemning the Charlottesville attacks and calling for President Trump to condemn the Ku Klux Klan, neo-Nazis, and hate groups responsible for the violence. Additionally, the resolution honors the lives of Heather Heyer, Lt. H. Jay Cullen, and Trooper-Pilot Berke M.M. Bates, and calls for the firing of White House staffers who have supported or encouraged support for white supremacists. Congresswoman Bonamici has cosponsored legislation, H.R. 356, the Protecting Our Democracy Act, which would create an independent commission to investigate attempts by the Russian government to influence the 2016 election. She has also supported various pieces of legislation to require the President to release his tax returns and place his assets in a blind trust. She has joined her colleagues in filing a lawsuit against the President, alleging violations of the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution.