Donald Trump has been blamed for the violent clashes between white supremacists and opposing groups and police in Virginia by the Mayor of Charlottesville.
Mayor Michael Signer said he was disappointed the white nationalists had descended on his town and said responsibility lay with Mr Trump for inflaming racial prejudices during his presidential campaign last year.
He said: “I’m not going to make any bones about it. I place the blame for a lot of what you’re seeing in America today right at the doorstep of the White House and the people around the president.”
Violent clashes have broken out at a protest over the decision by the city’s government to remove a statue of a confederate general.
Mr Trump has now issued his first tweet condemning the violence, several hours after the clashes first broke out.