Tillerson: Trump Speaks for Himself on Values

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson says President Donald Trump, who has faced criticism over his response to a recent white nationalist rally in Virginia, "speaks for himself" on his values.

Tillerson, appearing on Fox News Sunday, made the comment when asked about Trump's reaction to the rally, in which he blamed "many sides" for violence that erupted in the city of Charlottesville.

“We express America’s values from the State Department. We represent the American people, we represent America’s values, our commitment to freedom, our commitment to equal treatment of people the world over and that message has never changed,” the top U.S. diplomat said. “I don't believe anyone doubts the American people's values or the commitment of the American government or the government’s agencies to advancing those values and defending those values.”

Asked if he was separating himself from Trump on the matter, Tillerson said "I have spoken, I have made my own comments as to our values as well in a speech I gave to the State Department this past week."

Last week, a United Nations committee issued an appeal to the United States to repudiate racially-motivated crimes and hate speech following the rally in Charlottesville that resulted in a death, and warned a failure to do so could spark more violence. A statement Wednesday by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination cited "the failure at the highest political level to unequivocally reject racist violent events," in the United States.

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