A left-leaning fact-checking website, Snopes, has debunked claims made by President Biden and some media outlets that former President Trump called neo-Nazis ‘very fine people’ following the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017. The Trump campaign has seized on this fact check, calling the claim a ‘hoax’ and criticizing Biden for promoting a ‘lie’.
Snopes published a piece on Saturday debunking the claim, stating that Trump was clear he was not calling neo-Nazis ‘fine people’ when he made the comment at a press conference in 2017. They noted that Trump specifically condemned neo-Nazis and White supremacists, stating they should be ‘condemned totally’.
The Trump campaign, in response to the fact check, accused Biden and other Democrats of pushing a ‘hoax’ to smear Trump. Karoline Leavitt, Trump campaign national press secretary, told Fox News Digital that the Snopes fact check demonstrates how Biden and ‘corrupt Democrats’ promoted a ‘lie’ about Trump’s remarks.
Biden has repeatedly cited the false claim about Trump’s remarks, even stating it was a major factor in his decision to run against Trump in the 2020 presidential election. He has consistently pointed to Charlottesville as a moment of shame for the nation.
The protests in Charlottesville in 2017, which spanned two days in August, saw White nationalists clash with hundreds of counterprotesters. The protests escalated into violence, leading to three deaths and numerous injuries, including a car plowing through people and other attacks.
The Snopes fact check comes just days before the first debate between Trump and Biden, aligning with Trump’s long-held argument that his remarks were taken out of context and promoted by the left and members of the media.
Earlier this year, Biden faced criticism for making similar comments about anti-Israel protests on college campuses, prompting some to accuse him of having his own ‘Charlottesville moment’. Biden’s comments in April condemned antisemitic protests but also stated he condemned those who didn’t understand the Palestinian perspective. Critics argued that his comments mirrored Trump’s statements about Charlottesville.
The Trump campaign has called on Biden’s campaign to end any advertising that promotes the ‘lie’ about Trump’s Charlottesville remarks. Fox News Digital reached out to the Biden campaign for comment on the Snopes fact check and the Trump campaign’s response but did not immediately receive a response.
