It should be "very clear" that everybody is against racism and bigotry, and President Donald Trump, the leader of the free world should be "unambiguous" when it comes to the matter of prejudice, Rep. Will Hurd said Thursday.
"The outrage that some of the comments that he said has caused is because you're trying to equate neo-Nazi and skinheads and anti-Semites to people who stand against hate, that is the problem," the Texas Republican, who has called on Trump to apologize for his statements, told "CBS This Morning."
Hurd said his party is larger than just one person, but Trump should still not be on the fence when it comes to racism.
"I tell people all the time, we didn't elect an emperor, we elected a president," said Hurd. "The Republican Party is broader than just one individual."
Meanwhile, in this day and age, it should be "very clear" that everybody should be against racism and bigotry, said Hurd.
"The fact that the leader of the Senate had to put out a statement to say there are no good neo-Nazis, you know, is problematic," said Hurd.
He said that there should also be more understanding about why white supremacists act in the way they do, so work can be done to try to prevent events such as the violent actions in Charlottesville.
"I've spent nine and one-half years as an undercover officer in the CIA, and most of my career was chasing terrorists and dealing with evil," said Hurd. "You have to deal with evil head-on."
Hurd, though, said that while it concerns him that people in 2017 hold such views, there is "way more that unites us than divides us. Those are the things we should be talking about. Not the issues that are dividing us."
He also said he thinks Trump and lawmakers are consuming themselves with political arguments, when the issue is a matter of right or wrong.
"There are basic things," Hurd said. "Be kind to one another, right? Treat people with respect. Be honest. All those things that we learned in kindergarten are still valuable today, and I think we all need to take a deep breath and reset."