U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday distanced himself from supporters' chants of "send her back" after he criticized Somali-born Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar at a rally in North Carolina.
"I felt a little bit badly about it," Trump told reporters at the White House when asked about the chants, which drew an outpouring of criticism. "I would say that I was not happy with it. I disagreed with it. But again I didn't say that. They did. And I disagreed with."
But video shows him pausing his remarks and not admonishing his supporters.
He adds he "would certainly try" to stop the chant should it return.
Trump said this weekend that Omar and other progressive Democratic lawmakers of color should leave the country and "go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came" over their criticism of his administration.
The racist message sparked days of controversy, as the president sought to make the progressive lawmakers the face of their party.
