Dana Bash presses Doug Burgum as he deflects on Patriot Front march 

One of President Trump’s own Cabinet members, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, had multiple opportunities to clearly condemn a white nationalist group that marched through the nation’s capital on the Fourth of July. And instead of giving a simple, direct answer, we got something else.

DANA BASH: “There’s a widely circulated photograph, I’m sure you’ve seen it, taken by Reuters of an African American woman on a subway, surrounded by members of this group. Are you concerned about this?”

BURGUM: “Well, I think we obviously, when we’re celebrating America, we’ve had an incredible celebration, this is kickoff of a celebration year, but we know from our very founding that this was something that divided our nation. Eighty-five years after those brave patriots signed the Declaration of Independence we fought the bloodiest war America has ever fought, the Civil War, and its, our nation survived thanks to the courage and leadership of Abraham Lincoln.”  

Well, that was a long-winded way to avoid answering the question.  

CNN’S Dana Bash asked again, even more directly.  

BASH: “Do you condemn this group? And what they were doing, and most importantly what do they stand for?” 

BURGUM: “Well, I think what they stand for is nothing that I could possibly agree with, but one of the foundational principles of the United States that makes democracy messy is free speech.”  

Of........

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