President Donald Trump didn’t have a friend in “Fox & Friends” for at least a moment on Wednesday.
Brian Kilmeade, co-host of one of Trump’s favorite shows, slammed the president’s refusal to condemn right-wing hate groups during Tuesday’s first presidential debate.
Debate moderator Chris Wallace, a Fox News colleague, asked Trump to denounce white supremacists for violence at anti-racism protests, and Trump wouldn’t go there, blaming “the left-wing” for the confrontations.
The president at one point asked for a specific name of a white supremacist group he should condemn, and Democratic challenger Joe Biden offered the neo-fascist Proud Boys. “Proud Boys, stand back and stand by,” the president replied. (Trump’s response was celebrated as a call to readiness by the violent street gang.)
Kilmeade, after admonishing Biden for calling Trump a “clown” during the debate, sprinkled in a couple of sports metaphors to criticize the president’s performance.
“Donald Trump ruined the biggest layup in the history of debates by not condemning white supremacists,” Kilmeade said. “I don’t know if he didn’t hear it, but he’s gotta clarify that right away. That’s like, ‘Are you against evil?’ Why the president didn’t just knock it out of the park, I’m not sure.”