Trump presses NBC anchor to ask more about Antifa, left-wing violence

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Trump calls on Biden to condemn Antifa

Former Vice President Joe Biden called Antifa an ‘idea’ at the debate; Dave Rubin shares his firsthand experience with the group on ‘Fox & Friends.’

President Trump and NBC anchor Savannah Guthrie had a testy exchange at Thursday's presidential town hall, with the former wondering why she didn't ask him about left-wing actors like Antifa.

Their conversation came after Guthrie asked him about his position on white supremacy and the QAnon conspiracy theory. Throughout his responses, Trump repeatedly referenced Antifa and left-wing violence that has occured in some U.S. cities. 

"I'll tell you what I do know about, I know about antifa, and I know about the radical left, and I know how violent they are and how vicious they are, and I know how they are burning down cities run by Democrats," he said after Guthrie insisted the president knew about the QAnon conspiracy theory despite him saying he didn't.

After Guthrie pressed him again on QAnon, Trump suggested she should be asking about Antifa.

"Why aren't you asking me about Antifa?" he asked.

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Guthrie appeared to say that she didn't ask because Trump was "volunteering" the topic for discussion on his own.

"Why aren't you asking me about the radical left?" Trump continued. "Why aren't you asking Joe Biden questions about why doesn't he condemn Antifa?"  

Conservatives have generally criticized Democrats for not speaking out enough about the ongoing violence in U.S. cities, and took special aim at the way the Democratic National Convention handled the issue. Biden has repeatedly condemned violent activity amid ongoing protests and told a Pennsyvlania news outlet in September that he condemned all violence, including Antifa.

Trump, on Wednesday, also suggested Guthrie should ask Biden why he says Antifa doesn't exist. Trump seemed to be referring to Biden's comments during the first presidential debate when he said Antifa was "an idea, not an organization," referencing previous statements from FBI Director Christopher Wray.

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Wray had offered congressional testimony in which he said Antifa was a “real thing” and that the FBI had undertaken “any number of properly predicated investigations into what we would describe as violent anarchist extremists,” including into individuals who identify with Antifa.

At one point, he said that Antifa wasn't “a group or an organization. It’s a movement or an ideology.” He also said the individuals who identify with the Antifa movement were "coalescing regionally into what you might describe as small groups or nodes" that are under investigation.

The Associated Press and Fox News' Thomas Barrabi contributed to this report.