Burgum Won’t Condemn Patriot Front on July Fourth

Burgum dodges – Interior Secretary Doug Burgum dodged calls to condemn Patriot Front after the white nationalist group gathered in Washington, D.C., on July Fourth, instead framing the situation as protected “free speech” during an interview on “State of the Union.”

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum was asked directly on Sunday whether he condemned the Patriot Front, a white supremacist group that gathered in Washington, D.C., on July Fourth.

Instead of a straightforward answer. Burgum hedged—acknowledging what the group stands for while insisting that free speech makes democracy “messy.” The exchange came on “State of the Union. ” where Dana Bash pressed him multiple times to disavow the neo-fascist organization as hundreds of masked men in khaki carried Confederate flags through the capital and chanted “Reclaim America.”.

Bash began by asking whether the scene itself was a concern. Burgum did not start there. He said that race was “something that divided” from “our very founding. ” then pivoted to President Abraham Lincoln’s “courage and leadership” during the Civil War. arguing it allowed the U.S. to “continue to move forward as a country.”.

He returned to a familiar theme when Bash pressed again on the heart of her question: “Do you condemn this group and what they were doing, and most importantly, what they stand for?”

“Certainly, what they stand for is nothing I could possibly agree with, but one of the foundational principles of the US which makes democracy messy is free speech,” Burgum said.

Bash followed up in a way that left little room for ambiguity: “Do you condemn the Patriot Front?” Burgum answered, “Certainly, what they stand for is nothing that I could possibly agree with,” before doubling down on the idea that offending speech is part of American life.

He added, “But one of the foundational principles of the United States, which makes democracy messy, is free speech. And there are plenty of things that I see that I might personally find offensive and reprehensible.”

Burgum then broadened his comparison, saying, “But in America, free speech is allowed, and this is by the whole spectrum of things. I mean, we’re a country where someone can run and be elected saying that they’re a communist.”

Bash tried to force the question back onto President Donald Trump and the moment Patriot Front chose to appear. She asked whether he would recommend Trump denounce Patriot Front and its message. Burgum responded with a comparison that did not match the group Bash described.

“But this is white nationalism,” Bash said, tightening the framing again. “It’s, as you said, a part of America’s history that still has pockets. But the fact that they were here in Washington on such an important day…”

Burgum offered another equivocation, citing protests during Trump’s presidency and pointing to demonstrators who cry “Death to America.”

“This is part of free speech in America,” he said. “They can say it, we can object to it, but it is something that comes with free speech in America.”

The exchange left the key point unresolved: Bash asked for condemnation of Patriot Front and what they were doing on July Fourth. Burgum instead argued that even speech he finds offensive still falls under free speech protections—while repeatedly stopping short of denouncing the group on its own terms.

Doug Burgum Interior Secretary Patriot Front free speech white nationalism July Fourth Washington D.C. Dana Bash State of the Union Confederate flags Reclaim America Abraham Lincoln Donald Trump