Did donald trump say there were good people on both sides

1. What he actually said — the transcript and clips

Trump’s comments are on video and in transcripts from an impromptu August 15, 2017 press conference and later reiterations. In that exchange he twice placed blame “on both sides,” said “you also had some very bad people in that group,” and added “you also had people that were very fine people, on both sides” ^{[1] [3]}. Multiple news outlets and archival clips have preserved that phrasing ^{[7] [8]}.

2. How outlets and fact‑checkers framed the line

Major outlets reported the quote as delivered and highlighted its controversy. AP and BBC emphasized that Trump’s initial “many sides” wording prompted bipartisan criticism and that hours later he signed a resolution rejecting white supremacists even as he reiterated “both sides” rhetoric ^{[2] [8]}. Fact‑checkers such as Snopes reviewed the remark and concluded the record shows he did say “very fine people on both sides,” while also noting he separately condemned neo‑Nazis and white nationalists in the broader statement ^[5].

3. Defenders’ and critics’ competing interpretations

Supporters and Trump himself later argued the “very fine people” phrase referred to non‑violent participants at a statues/heritage protest and that he explicitly denounced racist extremists elsewhere in the statement ^{[5] [4]}. Critics — including commentators and columnists — argued the wording had the practical effect of equating violent white supremacists with their opponents and that the line was widely received as a moral failure, given the fatality and visible Nazi symbolism at the rally ^{[6] [4]}.

4. Why the phrasing mattered politically

News coverage at the time and subsequent political debate treated the sentence as consequential because the event included overt white‑supremacist imagery and the death of Heather Heyer after a car attack. Media and political opponents used Trump’s “both sides” framing to argue he failed to unequivocally condemn racist violence; allies countered that his remarks were more nuanced when read in full ^{[4] [2]}.

5. Later uses and disputes over “debunking”

Years later the line resurfaced in debates and campaign discourse. Trump and some allied commentators have cited fact‑checks and reinterpretations to claim the phrase was misconstrued or “debunked,” while fact‑check sites and many news accounts maintain the factual record: he said the words in question, and the context shows he did also say neo‑Nazis should be condemned, which has produced competing readings ^{[4] [5] [6]}.

6. What available sources do not mention

Available sources in this packet do not provide a verbatim, complete transcript of every sentence immediately surrounding the “very fine people” line beyond quoted excerpts, nor do they include full video timestamps that would settle debates over intonation and pauses ^{[1] [3]}. They also do not contain independent behavioral or psychological analysis about Trump’s intent; reporting instead focuses on what he said and how different outlets interpreted it ^{[1] [2] [5]}.

7. Bottom line for readers

The historical record is clear that Trump said “very fine people… on both sides” in connection with Charlottesville and repeatedly framed blame as shared ^{[1] [2] [3]}. Journalistic and fact‑checking sources document both that explicit phrase and the companion claim that he condemned neo‑Nazis elsewhere in the same remarks; reasonable observers therefore draw opposing conclusions about whether that condemnation negates the political effect of the “very fine people” line ^{[5] [4] [6]}. Readers should judge for themselves by reviewing the transcripts and clips cited by outlets such as PolitiFact, AP, C‑SPAN and Snopes ^{[1] [2] [3] [5]}.