An 18th charity has pulled its event from President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate since his controversial remarks on the violence at a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Va., last month.
The Palm Beach Habilitation Center will no longer hold its annual Hab-a-Hearts luncheon at the president’s property in Palm Beach, Fla., the Palm Beach Daily News reported Sunday.
“We’ve decided to move because we want to keep the focus of the event on our mission, which is to help adults with physical or mental challenges live the best lives possible,” the group’s CEO, David Lin, told the Daily News.
{mosads}The local charity becomes the latest in a long list of charities that have pulled their events from Trump’s estate since his remarks on the violence at the white nationalist rally in Charlottesville last month, in which he blamed “both sides” for the violence, including the white supremacists who had gathered to protest the removal of a Confederate statue and the counterprotesters who gathered in response.
“What about the alt-left that came charging at the — as you say, the alt-right?” Trump asked. “Do they have any semblance of guilt? What about the fact they came charging with clubs in their hands, swinging clubs? Do they have any problem? I think they do. As far as I am concerned, that was a horrible, horrible day.”
Twenty-four charities in total have pulled their events from the estate so far this year, according to the Daily News, including major nonprofits like the American Red Cross, The Salvation Army and Susan G. Komen Foundation.