'Just run the tapes': Snopes trolled for claiming Trump did not praise neo-Nazis after Charlottesville
WASHINGTON, DC: Fact-checking website Snopes published a piece on Saturday, June 22, stating that former President Donald Trump did not call Neo-Nazis "very fine people" following the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017.
According to Fox News, the claim was extensively promoted by Democrats and the Biden campaign, with the incumbent Joe Biden even reportedly saying that it was the impetus for his 2020 White House run against Trump.
"While Trump did say that there were ‘very fine people on both sides,’ he also specifically noted that he was not talking about neo-Nazis and White supremacists and said they should be 'condemned totally.' Therefore, we have rated this claim 'False,'" Snopes wrote on their website.
The Charlottesville incident of 2017
In August 2017, a Unite the Right rally marched through Charlottesville, with Neo-Nazis and White supremacists present among their ranks. They were met on the streets by hundreds of counterdemonstrators, and the two-day incident devolved into violence.
Three people lost their lives and dozens were injured in numerous attacks, which included a Neo-Nazi driver plowing his car through a group of protesters.
While the incident earned condemnation from both Republicans and Democrats, then President Donald Trump had come under fire for his remarks that there was "blame on both sides" and "very fine people, on both sides."
Trump campaign's response to the Snopes fact-check
The fact-check published by Snopes shows that Biden and other "corrupt Democrats" promoted a "lie" and "hoax" against the presumptive GOP nominee, Trump campaign national press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News on Sunday.
"The Charlottesville lie was another hoax perpetuated by the corrupt Democrats and their mouthpieces in the fake news media, just like the Hunter Biden laptop, the Russian collusion scandal and so many others, all in an attempt to smear President Trump," she stated.
"Joe Biden’s campaign must end any advertising that pushes this lie because President Trump has, once again, been proven right."
Internet refuses to accept Snopes' stance
Netizens did not buy into the recently published fact-check exonerating Trump, as the following tweets demonstrate.
"Just run the tape. We all witnessed it. You can't rewrite history and you can't gauge our lying eyes," wrote a user.
Just run the tape. We all witnessed it. You can't rewrite history and you can't gauge our lying eyes.
— Authentic Male (@Bigstickyou) June 24, 2024
"Who paid off Snopes?" inquired another.
"We heard him say it on live television…we know what he said," noted a third.
We heard him say it on live television…we know what he said.
— I Support the Establishment Clause (@freetofly543211) June 23, 2024
"Really? We all heard what Trump said," echoed a fourth user.
"Trump said on camera 'there are very fine people on both sides'. There were two sides, White Supremacists and regular people. Enough said!" noted a fifth.
Trump said on camera “there are very fine people on both sides”
— Greek (@Greekthirdparty) June 23, 2024
There were two sides, White Supremicists and regular people
Enough said!
This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.