New York Congressman Peter King on Sunday said Donald Trump's refusal to disavow endorsements from former Klan leader David Duke and other white supremacists groups is "indefensible and disgraceful."
Appearing Sunday on CNN's "State of the Union,"
Trump was asked about the Anti-Defamation League's call for him to condemn Duke, who said that voting against Trump was the equivalent of white people voting against their heritage."
"I know nothing about David Duke," Trump said. "I know nothing about white supremacists."
Trump was given the chance several times on Sunday to reject the endorsement of Duke and others, but would not. King said Trump's apparent ignorance about Duke and white supremacists groups was 'genuinely dumb.'
"Trump told Jake Tapper he doesn't know who David Duke is or what white supremacist organizations stand for. If Trump's statement is true, then he is genuinely dumb. If he is lying, that is shameful. In either case, he should not be running to lead the United States."
Appearing later on CNN, Tennessee Rep. Marsha Blackburn said Trump's answer was not acceptable.
"To me that would not be an acceptable answer," Blackburn told Tapper. "It should have been an easy answer for him to give. But I'm not someone advising Donald Trump."
Duke voiced backing for Trump on his radio program recently, and praised him for “taking on the Jewish establishment,” although he stopped short of endorsing the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination.
"As a Catholic I am particularly disgusted because of the KKK's long history and record of vicious anti-Catholicism," King said. "And as someone who grew up in Queens (N.Y.), I can say that -unlike Trump- real tough guys aren't afraid to take on the KKK."
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