World news

Subterms

    More stories

    • 100 Shares99 Views

      in World Politics

      India’s Atrocities in the Himalayas: Kashmir Under Attack

      by

      The Fair Observer website uses digital cookies so it can collect statistics on how many visitors come to the site, what content is viewed and for how long, and the general location of the computer network of the visitor. These statistics are collected and processed using the Google Analytics service. Fair Observer uses these aggregate statistics from website visits to help improve the content of the website and to provide regular reports to our current and future donors and funding organizations. The type of digital cookie information collected during your visit and any derived data cannot be used or combined with other information to personally identify you. Fair Observer does not use personal data collected from its website for advertising purposes or to market to you.As a convenience to you, Fair Observer provides buttons that link to popular social media sites, called social sharing buttons, to help you share Fair Observer content and your comments and opinions about it on these social media sites. These social sharing buttons are provided by and are part of these social media sites. They may collect and use personal data as described in their respective policies. Fair Observer does not receive personal data from your use of these social sharing buttons. It is not necessary that you use these buttons to read Fair Observer content or to share on social media. More

    • 138 Shares179 Views

      in World Politics

      Why Does the Islamic Republic of Iran Fear its Kurdish Population?

      by

      The Fair Observer website uses digital cookies so it can collect statistics on how many visitors come to the site, what content is viewed and for how long, and the general location of the computer network of the visitor. These statistics are collected and processed using the Google Analytics service. Fair Observer uses these aggregate statistics from website visits to help improve the content of the website and to provide regular reports to our current and future donors and funding organizations. The type of digital cookie information collected during your visit and any derived data cannot be used or combined with other information to personally identify you. Fair Observer does not use personal data collected from its website for advertising purposes or to market to you.As a convenience to you, Fair Observer provides buttons that link to popular social media sites, called social sharing buttons, to help you share Fair Observer content and your comments and opinions about it on these social media sites. These social sharing buttons are provided by and are part of these social media sites. They may collect and use personal data as described in their respective policies. Fair Observer does not receive personal data from your use of these social sharing buttons. It is not necessary that you use these buttons to read Fair Observer content or to share on social media. More

    • 125 Shares199 Views

      in US Politics

      Ron DeSantis book announcement a clear sign of presidential ambition

      by

      Ron DeSantis book announcement a clear sign of presidential ambitionFlorida governor expected to challenge Trump for Republican nod in 2024 will publish The Courage to Be Free in February In the clearest signal yet that Ron DeSantis is preparing a run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024, it was announced on Wednesday that the rightwing governor of Florida will publish a campaign-style book, mixing memoir with policy proposals.Republican Nikki Haley to decide on presidential bid over Christmas holidaysRead moreThe Courage to Be Free: Florida’s Blueprint for America’s Renewal, will be published by Broadside Books, a conservative imprint of HarperCollins, on 28 February.The governor, his publisher said, will offer readers “a first-hand account from the blue-collar boy who grew up to take on Disney and Dr Fauci”.DeSantis has not announced a 2024 run, but he is widely reported to be considering one. His victory speech after a landslide re-election this month met with chants of “Two more years!”The cover of the governor’s book shows him smiling broadly in front of a US flag.With Donald Trump under fire over disappointing midterms results, looming indictments and a controversial dinner with a white supremacist, possible Republican opponents are rapidly coming into focus.Mike Pence, Trump’s vice-president, has released a campaign-focused memoir, seeking to balance appeals to Trump’s supporters with distancing himself from the violent end to Trump’s time in office.Mike Pompeo, the former secretary of state, will release a book in the new year. Nikki Haley, the former UN ambassador who released a memoir in 2019, is also edging up to the starting line.Announcing DeSantis’s book, HarperCollins signaled a focus on the culture-war issues and theatrically cruel policy stunts that have propelled the governor to the front rank of potential candidates, alongside Trump in polls and sometimes ahead, prompting the former president to lash out.DeSantis clashed with Disney, a large employer in Florida, over legislation regarding the teaching of LGBTQ+ issues in schools, which was branded “don’t say gay” by critics.DeSantis’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, through which Anthony Fauci has advised two presidents, remains highly controversial. Florida has recorded nearly 83,000 deaths, third among US states in a national death toll approaching 1.1m.HarperCollins said DeSantis would “reveal” how he “accomplished more for his state” than any other “American leader”. Citing DeSantis’s graduation from Yale and Harvard, service in Iraq – as a navy lawyer – and election to Congress in 2012, the publisher said “in all these places, Ron DeSantis learned the same lesson: he didn’t want to be part of the leftist elite.”01:41“Since becoming governor of the sunshine state, he has fought – and won – battle after battle, defeating not just opposition from the political left, but a barrage of hostile media coverage,” it added.The announcement – which echoed numerous rightwing talking points on hot button social issues like Covid-19 and education – echoed DeSantis’s strident speech in Tallahassee earlier this month, after his easy win over the Democrat Charlie Crist, in which he proclaimed Florida the state “where woke goes to die”.HarperCollins also promised to “deliver something no other politician’s memoir has before: stories of victory”.That might seem to some a curious claim, given, for just one recent example, the publication just two years ago of A Promised Land, Barack Obama’s memoir of his rise to the presidency, significan legislative victories and preparations for his second presidential election win.TopicsBooksRon DeSantisUS elections 2024US politicsRepublicansFloridanewsReuse this content More

    • 213 Shares149 Views

      in US Politics

      ‘Don’t let him use the press’: Guardian readers on how the media should cover Trump’s 2024 run

      by

      ‘Don’t let him use the press’: Guardian readers on how the media should cover Trump’s 2024 runMore than 3,000 readers responded to our callout, and urged a ‘less is more’ approach when reporting on the former president Donald Trump’s announcement of a third run for the presidency has renewed a discussion in newsrooms on how best to cover the former president. That conversation is happening inside the Guardian, too.Beginning with his 2016 campaign, much of the US media took to Trump like a moth to a flame, covering him like a celebrity – one whose propensity to espouse lies and conspiracy theories riveted audiences. But Trump proved an expert at manipulating that coverage, which often unwittingly amplified those same lies.Trump’s 2024 campaign is undoubtedly news – he is, after all, a former president with a large following, who has left an indelible mark on American politics and is arguably the frontrunner for the Republican nomination in 2024. But that doesn’t mean we need to cover every utterance.We asked Guardian readers for their views on how the press can strike a better balance between delivering newsworthy information while refraining from platforming Trump’s more damaging rhetoric.We received more than 3,000 responses. Many readers argue, essentially, for a “less is more” approach to reporting on the former president. Not every tweet (should he resume tweeting), no matter how outlandish, is news, they say. Others called for caution when reporting his lies about election fraud in 2020. Many asked us to go easy on printing his photograph and to give equal time to other candidates.Nine responses from readers are below.‘Fewer stories with more substance, please’“The media should cover Trump’s candidacy without photographs and tweets and the like – and without catchphrases. All of those things cause kneejerk reactions. I know we have shorter attention spans, but honestly, I am hungry for quietness, nuance, content, a little thoughtfulness in my day. If you feel like imagery is required, then be creative and let the graphic artists illustrate an idea.“I think that should be the case for all candidates at this stage: fewer, more substantive stories about them all.” Nancy Aten, 63, progressive and Democratic, from Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin‘Focus on fresh candidates that deserve more oxygen’“Trump should be treated as a person running in an election, not a foregone conclusion nor a fascinating spectacle and certainly not a celebrity. The American media has so breathlessly covered each of Trump’s successive small and large leaps further into the absurd that it culminated in thousands of people genuinely believing they had a right to violently overthrow our most important seat of government with him as their king.“I’m concerned about the air of this election being completely sucked up by Biden and Trump again when voters across the spectrum are ready for a new generation. Ron DeSantis is an interesting candidate, and I’m also interested in hearing about who the potential successors to Biden could be on the left. Who are the new compelling candidates that deserve platforming?” Shawn Martin, 31, architect, independent/Democratic, will always consider a split ticket, from San Diego, California‘Don’t platform election 2020 fraud claims’“The press should cover Trump minimally. Only if he is in a debate. No rallies, no social media posts or rambling/ranting spiels. Do not report anything he says about 2020 or fraudulent elections. No matter how ‘out there’ he goes, rein in the impulse to bleat about his latest nonsense.“Cover actual policy statements, debates and so on. Stick with strictly bare minimum reporting. There is no need to feed him.” Pam M, in her late 50s, nurse, moderate Republican, from Las Vegas, Nevada‘Complete coverage of the Trump campaign’“I’d like to see accurate, complete coverage of the Trump campaign with the same volume as competitors receive. More investigative journalism using every tool in the toolbox. When Trump or his campaign make assertions which are false this should be covered, but the truth must also be reported.“The coverage should highlight the ongoing criminal and civil investigations and legal cases against Trump and his business. Simply put, maximize resources uncovering Trump’s past and present misbehaviors while eliminating uncritical reporting of Trump’s false assertions or hateful rhetoric. Democracy works best as a true competition of ideas and policies.” Joel Block, 74, retired, Democratic, from Orange county, California‘A politicized press has polarized the public even more’“The right balance would be equal balance on all relevant candidates. Don’t get into the perpetual habit of always displaying Mr Trump’s negatives. Those are already glaringly obvious. And it allows Trump to counter-attack the media as being biased and prejudiced against him. To his diehard minority base it merely enforces their belief that the media is the enemy of the people.“In today’s world of course all media either leans towards one political spectrum or another, which has polarized the public even more. Try to return to a more balanced and fair reporting, less politicized viewpoints. Try to negate the sensational. Try to regain the public’s trust.” Ronald Wallis, retired postal carrier, leans Democratic, from Oregon City, Oregon‘Less speculation, less sensationalism, better dialogue’“Everyone I know is sick of the media giving voice to bullshit – on both sides. Think about it. Has sensationalizing and [constantly] putting Trump on the front page for the past six years, helped or harmed civil society and its issues? I believe press coverage during these years has helped normalize hate, lying, divisiveness and authoritarianism, delayed accountability and eroded morality. Doing more of this type of Trump coverage will be devastating. Don’t speculate ad nauseam. Unless you provide hard facts, and put pressure on both sides to find truth, you are playing into Trump’s hand. He loves all the attention, it enables him to manipulate the conversation.“Personally, if I had to hear more about him, I’d like to know: what destruction has Trump caused in all his failed business dealings around the world? What destruction and sabotage have Trump policies caused, for instance, in South American partnerships, in immigration policies, human rights, our military, the national parks, postal service, infrastructure, and so on?“The people that support Trump in our community – the majority – need to understand what they are supposedly fighting for. These are fundamentally good people who need to know that ‘liberals’ are not their enemy.” April, retired retail sector worker and environmental educator, Democratic, from Prescott, Arizona‘The right balance on Trump is no balance at all’“What is the right balance in covering Trump? Trump and Trumpism are a grave threat to democracy. The right balance is no balance whatsoever. His candidacy, let alone a re-election, will do further damage to our society, it can accomplish no good.“The media have been bullied and manipulated by the political class into maintaining some sense of ‘balance’ in exchange for access, but the very notion of ‘balance’ is a loophole for power-obsessed demagogues to turn the media into their stenographers and personal publishers.” Aaron Barclay, 42, accountant, democratic socialist, from Chicago, Illinois‘No soundbites, no pithy opinions, less drama’“The media should cover Trump matter-of-factly. Pertinent information only that’s actually substantive. No soundbites. No pithy opinions. Just bare-bones. No dramatic reactions. Just keep it parked in neutral.“If it isn’t newsworthy, leave it. If it is, just keep it simple. We don’t need commentary from a panel of journalists on their interpretation of every detail. Think Cronkite. My concern is that the media likes the titular drama of Trump.” Susan Goldsmith, 54, legal specialist, Republican, from Charleston, South Carolina‘Don’t let Trump use the press’“The press is in a hard spot with people like Trump who only seem concerned with manipulation the media to their advantage. Not every tweet or complaint is a headline. The war in Ukraine is a headline.“Don’t let Trump or his allies use the press to hurt our country. Don’t give him free press for sensationalism. Cover where he’s campaigning and his policy platform – if he had one. Don’t give oxygen to lies or incitement that could trigger any dangerous responses. Cover him like you cover Marco Rubio, not like you cover [fill in Hollywood A-lister]. If he gets in trouble write it like he’s a no-name hack. If he has something positive to say, give him credit.” Brent Heckerman, 54, business innovator, Democratic, from Cincinnati, Ohio‘Draw a clearer line between fact and opinion, return to civil debate’“I like to think I am moderate in my views. The former president has not earned the right to broadcast his opinions in the media unless the information has been fact checked first. Lies and misinformation are terribly misleading and destructive. The enormous attention Trump has received, whether negative or positive, has helped him build momentum.“Report factually, avoid sensational news when it has no merit. Stick to the job of reporting and clearly call out when what is stated is mere opinion and nothing more. Too many news stations are biased and very demeaning of the political party they dislike. Sarcasm, using slurs, lack of civility and disrespect have run rampant. Time to change course and set an example of what civil disagreement looks like.” Linda Pittman, 72, retired, Democratic, previously independent, from Incline Village, NevadaTopicsUS newsDonald TrumpUS politicsThe GuardianfeaturesReuse this content More

    • 113 Shares199 Views

      in World Politics

      Can India’s Ailing Agricultural Procurement Find a New Model?

      by

      The Fair Observer website uses digital cookies so it can collect statistics on how many visitors come to the site, what content is viewed and for how long, and the general location of the computer network of the visitor. These statistics are collected and processed using the Google Analytics service. Fair Observer uses these aggregate statistics from website visits to help improve the content of the website and to provide regular reports to our current and future donors and funding organizations. The type of digital cookie information collected during your visit and any derived data cannot be used or combined with other information to personally identify you. Fair Observer does not use personal data collected from its website for advertising purposes or to market to you.As a convenience to you, Fair Observer provides buttons that link to popular social media sites, called social sharing buttons, to help you share Fair Observer content and your comments and opinions about it on these social media sites. These social sharing buttons are provided by and are part of these social media sites. They may collect and use personal data as described in their respective policies. Fair Observer does not receive personal data from your use of these social sharing buttons. It is not necessary that you use these buttons to read Fair Observer content or to share on social media. More

    • 88 Shares129 Views

      in US Politics

      US Senate passes bill protecting same-sex marriage

      by

      US Senate passes bill protecting same-sex marriageHouse must now pass legislation as Democrats hurry to get it Biden to sign into law before Republicans take over the chamber The US Senate has passed the Respect for Marriage Act, legislation to protect same-sex unions that Democrats are hurrying to get to Joe Biden to be signed into law before Republicans take over the House next year.‘No rings, no guests’: supreme court fears spur LGBTQ ‘shotgun’ weddingsRead moreThe House must now pass the bill, a step the majority leader, Steny Hoyer, said could come as soon as Tuesday 6 December. Nearly 50 House Republicans supported the measure earlier this year. In the Senate, support from 12 Republicans was enough to override the filibuster and advance the bill to Tuesday’s majority vote, which ended 61-36.Although the Respect for Marriage Act would not codify Obergefell v Hodges, the 2015 supreme court decision which made same-sex marriage legal nationwide, it would require states to recognise all marriages that were legal when performed, including in other states. Interracial marriages would also be protected, with states required to recognise legal marriage regardless of “sex, race, ethnicity, or national origin”.Same-sex marriage has been thought under threat since June, when the conservative-dominated supreme court struck down the right to abortion. Then, the hardline justice Clarence Thomas wrote that other privacy-based rights, including same-sex marriage, could be reconsidered next.Public support for same-sex marriage is at an all-time high of around 70% but according to the Movement Advancement Project, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group, if the supreme court did overturn the right, at least 29 states would be able to enforce bans.Before the vote on Tuesday, the US transportation secretary, Pete Buttigieg, wrote on Twitter: “Strange feeling, to see something as basic and as personal as the durability of your marriage come up for debate on the Senate floor.“But I am hopeful that they will act to protect millions of families, including ours, and appreciate all that has gone into preparing this important legislation to move forward.”After the vote, Sheldon Whitehouse, a Democratic senator from Rhode Island, said the Respect for Marriage Act would “place the right to marry out of this activist supreme court’s reach. We affirm what the American people already understand: every person deserves the freedom to marry the one they love.”James Esseks, director of the LGBTQ & HIV Rights Project at the American Civil Liberties Union, pointed to the need for more work.In a statement, he said: “For the last seven years, LGBTQ+ families across the country have been able to build their lives around their right to marriage equality. The Respect for Marriage Act will go a long way to ensure an increasingly radical supreme court does not threaten this right, but LGBTQ+ rights are already under attack nationwide.“Transgender people especially have had their safety, dignity, and healthcare threatened by lawmakers across the country, including by members of this Congress. While we welcome the historic vote on this measure, members of Congress must also fight like trans lives depend on their efforts because trans lives do.”In his opinion in the abortion case, Thomas did not mention interracial marriage. The justice, who is Black, is married to the conservative activist Ginni Thomas, who is white.The Republican leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, is white. His wife, the former transportation secretary Elaine Chao, is Asian American. McConnell has voted against the Respect for Marriage act.On Tuesday, Biden, who as vice-president famously came out in support of same-sex marriage before his boss, Barack Obama, said: “For millions of Americans, this legislation will safeguard the rights and protections to which LGBTQ+ and interracial couples and their children are entitled.“It will also ensure that, for generations to follow, LGBTQ+ youth will grow up knowing that they too can lead full, happy lives and build families of their own.”Biden thanked senators for their “bipartisan achievement” and said he “look[ed] forward to welcoming them at the White House after the House passes this legislation and sends it to my desk, where I will promptly and proudly sign it into law”.On Monday, before a test vote, the Democratic Senate leader, Chuck Schumer of New York, also praised Republicans who backed the measure, saying: “A decade ago, it would have strained all of our imaginations to envision both sides talking about protecting the rights of same-sex married couples.”Republicans argued for amendments they say won the support of religious groups that nonetheless oppose same-sex marriage, among them the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.“They see this as a step forward for religious freedom,” Thom Tillis of South Carolina told the Associated Press.Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, a Democrat and the first openly gay senator, told the AP the way some Republicans came round on the issue reminded her “of the arc of the LBGTQ+ movement to begin with, in the early days when people weren’t out and people knew gay people by myths and stereotypes”.With growing acceptance of LGBTQ+ rights, Baldwin said, “slowly laws have followed. It is history.”Associated Press contributed reportingTopicsSame-sex marriage (US)LGBTQ+ rightsUS politicsUS CongressUS SenateDemocratsRepublicansnewsReuse this content More

    • 125 Shares119 Views

      in Elections

      Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes found guilty of seditious conspiracy

      by

      Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes found guilty of seditious conspiracyJury convicts leader of rightwing group which supported Trump’s attempt to overturn 2020 election Stewart Rhodes, the founder of the rightwing Oath Keepers militia, has been found guilty of seditious conspiracy, a charge arising from the attack on the US Capitol by supporters of Donald Trump.Rhodes and co-defendant Kelly Meggs are the first people in nearly three decades to be found guilty of the rarely used civil war-era charge at trial. The trial was the biggest test yet for the US justice department in its efforts to hold accountable those responsible for the attack that shook the foundations of US democracy.US courts ruling in favor of justice department turns legal tide on TrumpRead moreOn social media, Harry Litman, a former US attorney turned legal analyst, said the guilty verdicts represented “a huge huge victory for the US [justice department] in a challenging and deeply important, even historic, case”.Rhodes is a Yale Law-educated former paratrooper and disbarred attorney. In an eight-week trial, he and four associates were accused of fomenting a plot to use force to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory.It was the most significant trial arising from the Capitol riot of 6 January 2021, which has been linked to nine deaths including suicides among law enforcement officers. A US district judge, Amit Mehta, presided. The 12-member jury deliberated for three days.Rhodes’ four co-defendants were Meggs, Kenneth Harrelson, Jessica Watkins and Thomas Caldwell.Meggs was convicted of seditious conspiracy. Harrelson, Caldwell and Watkins were acquitted.During the trial, Watkins admitted impeding police officers, and apologized. All five defendants were convicted of obstruction of an official proceeding, with mixed verdicts on a handful of other charges. Rhodes was acquitted of two other conspiracy charges.Rhodes intends to appeal, defense attorney James Lee Bright told reporters. Another Rhodes lawyer, Ed Tarpley, described the verdict as a “mixed bag”, adding, “This is not a total victory for the government in any way, shape or form.”“We feel like we presented a case that showed through evidence and testimony that Mr Rhodes did not commit the crime of seditious conspiracy,” Tarpley said.Rhodes, who wears an eye patch after accidentally shooting himself in the face, was one of the most prominent defendants of around 900 charged so far in connection with the Capitol attack.He founded the Oath Keepers, whose members include current and retired military personnel, law enforcement officers and first responders, in 2009. Members have showed up, often heavily armed, at protests and political events including demonstrations following the May 2020 murder of George Floyd by a white police officer in Minneapolis.Prosecutors said Rhodes and his co-defendants planned to use force to stop Congress from certifying Biden’s win.Rhodes did not go inside the Capitol but was accused of leading the plot. Through recordings and encrypted messages, jurors heard how he rallied followers to fight to keep Trump in office, warned of a “bloody” civil war and expressed regret that the Oath Keepers did not bring rifles on 6 January.Meggs, Watkins and Harrelson entered the Capitol wearing tactical gear. The defendants were accused of creating a “quick reaction force” positioned at a Virginia hotel and equipped with firearms that could be quickly transported to Washington.Fifty witnesses testified. Rhodes and two others testified in their own defense. They denied plotting an attack or seeking to stop Congress from certifying results. Rhodes insisted that his followers who went inside went rogue.Prosecutors sought to paint Rhodes as a liar, showing him his own inflammatory text messages, videos, photos and recordings. These included Rhodes saying he could have hanged the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, from a lamppost.Watkins, a transgender woman who fled the US army, and Caldwell, a disabled navy veteran, were the others who chose to testify.Watkins admitted “criminal liability” for impeding officers inside the Capitol but denied any plan to storm the building, instead describing being “swept up” in the moment, just as enthusiastic shoppers behave when they rush into stores to purchase discounted holiday gifts.Caldwell, who like Rhodes did not enter the Capitol, never formally joined the Oath Keepers. He tried to downplay inflammatory texts he sent in connection with the attack, saying some of the lines were adapted from or inspired by movies such as The Princess Bride or cartoons such as Bugs Bunny.Four other Oath Keepers members charged with seditious conspiracy are due to go to trial in December. Members of another rightwing group, the Proud Boys, including its former chairman Enrique Tarrio, also are due for trial on seditious conspiracy charges in December.TopicsUS Capitol attackUS politicsDonald TrumpUS crimeThe far rightnewsReuse this content More

    • 113 Shares179 Views

      in US Politics

      Republican leaders rebuke Trump over dinner with white supremacist

      by

      Republican leaders rebuke Trump over dinner with white supremacistMitch McConnell and Kevin McCarthy break silence over meeting and say no room in party for antisemitism or white supremacy The top two Republicans in Congress have broken their silence about Donald Trump’s dinner last week with the rightwing extremist Nick Fuentes, saying the Republican party has no place for antisemitism or white supremacy.Jewish conservatives condemn Trump for meeting antisemite Nick FuentesRead moreThe Senate Republican leader, Mitch McConnell, and Kevin McCarthy, who may become House speaker in January, had not commented previously on the 22 November meeting.Trump began his 2024 bid for the White House on 15 November and is Republican voters’ top choice, according to polling.“There is no room in the Republican party for antisemitism or white supremacy and anyone meeting with people advocating that point of view, in my judgment, are highly unlikely to ever be elected president of the United States,” McConnell told reporters on Tuesday – without mentioning Trump by name.Asked if he would support Trump should he become the party’s 2024 nominee, McConnell said: “That would apply to all of the leaders in the party who will be seeking offices.”McCarthy was pressed by reporters after White House talks with Joe Biden.“I don’t think anybody should be spending any time with Nick Fuentes,” said the House minority leader. “His views are nowhere within the Republican party or within this country itself.“Trump has said the encounter at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida was inadvertent but the meeting has drawn rare criticism from Republicans, some of whom accused Trump of empowering extremism. Tuesday’s comments were the first about the meeting by McCarthy and McConnell.Fuentes has been described as a white supremacist by the US justice department. The Anti-Defamation League said Fuentes once “jokingly denied the Holocaust and compared Jews burnt in concentration camps to cookies in an oven”.While president, Trump was broadly criticized for not explicitly condemning white nationalists whose August 2017 rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, was seen as having provoked violence with counter-protesters, one of whom was killed.“You also had people that were very fine people on both sides,” Trump said.Trump’s former vice-president, Mike Pence, on Monday called for an apology for the meeting with Fuentes.“President Trump was wrong to give a white nationalist, an antisemite and a Holocaust denier a seat at the table, and I think he should apologize,” Pence told NewsNation.Fuentes attended the dinner with Ye, the musician formerly known as Kanye West, who has also drawn widespread criticism for antisemitic comments.TopicsRepublicansUS politicsDonald TrumpUS CongressnewsReuse this content More