Democratic Rep. says Trump presidency 'unraveling before our eyes'

— -- Donald Trump is facing fresh criticism this week over his response to the deadly violence that broke in Charlottesville last Saturday. A bipartisan group of lawmakers denounced the president's statements blaming "both sides" after counter-protesters clashed with neo-Nazis and white nationalists, leaving one dead more than a dozen people injured.

Rep. Andre Carson, D-Indiana, is among those criticizing Trump’s comments. Carson recently sponsored a House resolution calling on the president to fire white nationalists serving in his administration, he told ABC News' congressional correspondent Mary Bruce and national political reporter MaryAlice Parks Friday on ABC's “Powerhouse Politics” podcast.

“Condemning neo-Nazis and white supremacists should be easy,” the Indianapolis Democrat said. Carson, however, argues that the president decided, “to stand up for ... bigots and defend a domestic terrorist organization.”

In his Tuesday press conference, Trump said, “you had many people in that group other than neo-Nazis and white nationalists ... you had some fine people.” Rep. Carson believes the president’s failure to condemn white nationalists outright “is disgraceful and quite frankly unpresidential.”

While Republican lawmakers like Sen. Marco Rubio and Gov. John Kasich, have taken to Twitter to condemn Trump’s comments, Rep. Carson believes their criticism could go further. “I would love to see my Republican colleagues speak out more boldly,” he said.

Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin, has also faced criticism for his failure to denounce the president’s words. Carson says while the speaker has a “tough job,” he would “get more respect from his constituents and from the American people if he becomes bolder in rebuking and distancing himself from the Trump administration.”

That not more Republicans have spoken up against the president’s statements may isolate racial, ethnic, and religious minorities, Carson argues. “[Trump] has a history and a habit of minimizing groups of people," he said.

Carson argues these statues “mythologize” historical figures, like General Robert E. Lee, who led controversial lives. President Trump, however, disagrees. He took to Twitter Thursday to argue if localities begin to remove statues of confederate figures, “who's next, Washington, Jefferson?”

Does Carson think Trump’s recent firing of White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon is a step in the right direction? No. “He should have never been hired in the first place,” he says.

“It was disgraceful [for Trump] to hire someone who said and [published] the terrible things he did,” Carson argues. “This is long overdue.”

As summer nears its end, the Trump administration has faced several setbacks including the president’s controversial comments over Charlottesville, the firing of several top aides, including Bannon and Anthony Scaramucci, and rising tensions with North Korea. “I think that this presidency is unraveling before our eyes” Carson argues.