Attorney General Jeff Sessions Jefferson (Jeff) Beauregard SessionsTrump's policies on refugees are as simple as ABCs Ocasio-Cortez, Velázquez call for convention to decide Puerto Rico status White House officials voted by show of hands on 2018 family separations: report MORE on Monday defended President Trump's comments on the violent clashes Saturday in Charlottesville, Va.

During an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America," Sessions was asked "what sides" Trump was referring to in his statement condemning the violence in Virginia.

"Racism, white supremacy is totally unacceptable. I think the president talked about the problems in America in that first statement had been going on a long time," Sessions said.

Sessions said Trump was "unequivocal" in criticizing racism and bigotry.

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Sessions said Trump in his statement "explicitly condemned the kind of ideology behind these movements of Nazism, white supremacy, the KKK."

"That is his unequivocal position. He totally opposes those kind of values," Sessions said.

"His statement yesterday again affirmed that."

Asked if Trump needs to specifically condemn neo-Nazis and white supremacists, Sessions responded "absolutely."

Does the President today need to specifically condemn neo-Nazis and white supremacists?

AG Sessions: "Absolutely." on @CBSThisMorning pic.twitter.com/tzl0ch3KWY — Norah O'Donnell (@NorahODonnell) August 14, 2017

Trump faced criticism for his comments, in which he denounced violence by "many sides" in Charlottesville, but didn't directly call out hate groups marching in the city.

A white supremacist rally in the college town turned deadly when a car was driven into counterprotesters, killing one and injuring at least 19 others. The alleged driver, 20-year-old James Alex Fields Jr., who had driven from Ohio to participate in the rally, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder, among other charges.

Some officials said Trump should have gone further in his response condemning the violence.