Nancy Pelosi Condemns Donald Trump’s Debate Behavior, Says President’s Rhetoric ‘Keeps Me Up At Night’

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi condemned President Donald Trump’s behavior during the presidential debate this week. Pelosi said Trump’s rhetoric on white supremacy and the integrity of the election “keeps me up at night,” and characterized the president as a “bully.”

“As speaker over time, people have said to me, 'What keeps you up at night?' The night of the debate, you saw what keeps me up at night," Pelosi, D-Calif., told reporters at a Capitol Hill press briefing on Thursday. "To see a president of the United States in a debate with a potential president of the United States, refuse to condemn white supremacists, refuse to commit to a peaceful transfer of government, to ignore the climate crisis as our country is burning and our coasts are hit by fierce storms, to be there to crush the Affordable Care Act instead of crushing the virus."

Trump and Pelosi have a tense relationship, and have not spoken with each other for about a year. Trump has frequently mocked the speaker, calling her “crazy Nancy.”

"What keeps me up at night is what we saw that night was authenticity on both sides of the stage. The president authentically a bully. Joe Biden authentically a decent person who cares about America's working families," she continued.

During the debate, Trump was asked to condemn white supremacy, but instead told the far-right Proud Boys group to “stand back and stand by.” Trump said violence in American cities was caused mainly by left-wing groups such as antifa.

On Wednesday, Trump walked back the comments, saying he doesn’t know the Proud Boys.

"Whoever they are, they have to stand down, let law enforcement do their work,” Trump told reporters at the White House.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., also criticized Trump’s debate performance, calling it “disgraceful.” Some Senate Republicans, such as Tim Scott of South Carolina, said Trump “misspoke” in regards to his comments on the Proud Boys.

Trump has made frequent missteps on race relations. In June, Trump approvingly tweeted a video showing one of his supporters chanting “white power” and then deleted the post.

One of the most controversial moments of the Trump presidency was in August 2017, when he said there “were very fine people on both sides” following clashes at a white supremacist gathering in Charlottesville, Virginia. Bipartisan lawmakers swiftly rebuked Trump’s comments, with the NAACP condemning the president's remarks.