House Speaker Paul D. Ryan said Monday that the white supremacists who have gained such a high profile in recent weeks remain “only on the fringes” of American life, but said the country cannot tolerate any attempts to show moral relativism.
“There is no confusion about right and wrong here. There are no sides. There is no other argument. We will not tolerate this hateful ideology in our society,” Mr. Ryan said in a web post.
The GOP leader is slated to take part in a town hall to be aired on CNN later Monday, and he said he expects to discuss the topic more fully.
Mr. Ryan did not mention President Trump by name in his lengthy post, but took pains to stake out a different position than the president, who while condemning neo-Nazis and white nationalists also said there were good and bad people on both sides of the Charlottesville clashes.
“We all need to make clear there is no moral relativism when it comes to neo-Nazis. We cannot allow the slightest ambiguity on such a fundamental question,” Mr. Ryan said.
A neo-Nazi march on Aug. 12 was met by counter-protests, and the two sides clashed. In the aftermath, a man who was seen marching with the white supremacists plowed his car into a crowd of counter-protesters, killing one woman and injuring 19 others, police said.
Mr. Ryan praised the reaction of the parents of Heather Heyer, the 32-year-old woman killed, who said in a memorial service that her memory would spark unity and her cause of fighting hatred would be strengthened.
“Instead of turning to anger, they call for healing and forgiveness. They set a powerful example,” Mr. Ryan said.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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