Trump blames media for Charlottesville response
August 23, 2017  09:17
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United States President Donald Trump blamed media during a campaign-style rally in Phoenix, arguing that the media were "dishonest" in their portrayal of his response to a violent white supremacist protest in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Trump opened his rally with a call for unity, saying, "What happened in Charlottesville strikes at the core of America and tonight, this entire arena stands united in forceful condemnation of the thugs that perpetrated hatred and violence."

But he quickly trained his ire on the media, shouting that he "openly called for healing unity and love" in the immediate aftermath of Charlottesville and claiming the media had misrepresented him. 

He read from his three responses to the violence -- getting more animated with each one, arguing that "the words were perfect."

"You know where my heart is," Trump told the crowd.

Trump accused the media of 'trying to take away our history and our heritage."

Trump also accused news outlets of "turning the cameras off" at the rally and cutting off coverage of the event. However, no major news outlets appeared to actually stop their live streams or video coverage of Trump's speech.
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