What Fox & Friends anchor Abby Huntsman seemingly envisioned as a debate between the right and the left over the removal of Confederate monuments instead became a teary-eyed condemnation of President Trump's remarks about the recent white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Democratic political analyst Wendy Osefo spoke first on Wednesday's episode of Fox & Friends, and she refused to reduce the discussion to the debate over Confederate statues. "It's beyond a monument. This is about hatred. This is about white supremacy," Osefo said. She noted how unsettling it was to hear the president not directly condemn white nationalists, but instead blame "both sides" for the violence.
Huntsman turned to Republican political analyst Gianno Caldwell for his opinion, echoing Trump's argument that there are "good people on both sides" and wondering how we can learn from history "if we tear everything down." But Caldwell didn't take the bait. "You know, I come today with a very heavy heart. Last night I couldn't sleep at all because President Trump, our president, has literally betrayed the conscience of our country," Caldwell said. "The very moral fabric in which we've made progress when it comes to race relations in America, he's failed us."
Both Osefo and Caldwell teared up as Caldwell continued speaking. He specifically called out Trump's claim at his "disturbing" press conference Tuesday that there were "some very fine people" marching alongside the white nationalist protesters. "Mr. President, good people don't pal around with Nazis and white supremacists," Caldwell said. "Maybe they don't consider themselves white supremacists and Nazis, but certainly they hold those views."
Anyone who defends Trump's remarks, Caldwell concluded, is "completely lost" and potentially "morally bankrupt."
Watch the gripping segment below. Becca Stanek