Updated: Revised at 3 p.m. on Tuesday with Rep. Ron Wright's repudiation of Trump.

WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump's suggestion that four nonwhite Democratic members of Congress should "go back" home -- even though they're all American citizens and three were born in the United States -- kept fellow Republicans on the defensive on Monday.

Repudiation gushed from Democrats, but came in a trickle from his own party.

After saying nothing for 36 hours, Sen. John Cornyn called Trump's comments an "unforced error." As of Tuesday afternoon, four GOP House members from Texas issued more stern denunciations as most remained silent, feeding a sense that Trump's unbreakable support from the party's base has intimidated other Republicans.

U.S. citizenship is required to vote, let alone to serve in Congress. Three of the four lawmakers Trump attacked were born in the United States. At the White House, he refused to back down in depicting the four freshmen House members, all women, as something other than true Americans.

"If you hate our country, if you're not happy here you can leave," he said, adding that if anyone sees his comments as racist, "it doesn't concern me... because many people agree with me."

Democrats roundly condemned Trump for belittling fellow Americans and suggesting that those he disagrees with are unwelcome in their own country. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi vowed a resolution to condemn the xenophobia. Rep. Colin Allred of Dallas lamented that because of the president's open prejudice, "on a playground today a child will be told to `go back' to their country."

On a playground today a child will be told to "go back" to their country because of something the President of the United States said.



Our leaders should unite us to create a more perfect union. Americans deserve better and this divisive rhetoric has no place in our politics. — Colin Allred (@ColinAllredTX) July 15, 2019

"Time after time, Texas Republicans stay silent on racist attacks. We think the answer is pretty simple: don't be a racist. There is no room for bigotry in our great nation," said Texas Democratic Party spokesman Abhi Rahman.

The party called out Gov. Greg Abbott and other top Texas Republicans for failing to weigh in on Trump's comments, which were too much for some to ignore.

On Tuesday, ahead of a House vote on resolution to rebuke Trump, Rep. Ron Wright, a freshman Republican from Arlington, criticized him for a stirring acrimony, and also rejected the Democrats' move to formally label him a racist.

"I have been and remain a strong supporter of President Trump and his policies, which have been great for America, including and especially for our minority communities," Wright said, but "when one becomes a citizen of this country, it no longer matters where they came from. They are now Americans.... As a conservative Republican, I disagree with these four colleagues on a great many issues, but telling them to leave the country because I disagree with them is not a solution."

A few Texas Republicans had voiced objections a day earlier.

A retired judge on the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, appointed in 2011 by Rick Perry -- now Trump's energy secretary -- announced Monday that she was quitting the GOP. "It has taken me years to say this publicly but here I go. President Trump is the worst president in the history of this country," Elsa Alcala posted on Facebook.

In Congress, Rep. Pete Olson, a six-term Sugar Land Republican, forcefully distanced himself from Trump -- a rarity for him -- by insisting the comments don't reflect the values in his diverse suburban Houston district. He narrowly won a sixth term last fall against Sri Preston Kulkarni, a former diplomat whose father immigrated from India. Kulkarni is seeking a rematch next year.

The Tweet President Trump posted over the weekend about fellow Members of Congress are not reflective of the values of the 1,000,000+ people in Texas 22. We are proud to be the most diverse Congressional district in America. I urge our President immediately disavow his comments. — Rep. Pete Olson (@RepPeteOlson) July 15, 2019

Rep. Will Hurd, R-San Antonio, has been far less hesitant to criticize Trump, and on CNN on Monday, he called the latest comments "racist and xenophobic."

"It's also behavior that's unbecoming of the leader of the free world," he said.

Freshman Rep. Chip Roy tweeted Sunday that "POTUS was wrong to say any American citizen, whether in Congress or not, has any 'home' besides the U.S." But he also gave Trump cover as the president dug in on his attacks on the foursome, retweeting Trump's assertion that "the many terrible things they say about the United States must not be allowed to go unchallenged."

Although Roy sent mixed messages, most Texas Republicans issued no messages at all.

Sen. Ted Cruz did not weigh in, and his office did not respond to a request for comment.

Ted Cruz pointedly ignores questions from reporters and says he doesn’t comment on Trump’s tweets. — Haley Byrd (@byrdinator) July 15, 2019

Cornyn, who is seeking reelection to a fourth term next year, said nothing until reporters confronted him at the Capitol on Monday afternoon.

"I don't think the president's a racist," he said, adding, "It was a mistake.''

Before the senator spoke with reporters Monday afternoon, Rahman called him "spineless and weak" for failing to condemn Trump's "clear and racist language."

Most lawmakers were in transit on Monday, returning to Washington for the work week. A number of Senate Republicans broke their silence as the day wore on. Utah Sen. Mitt Romney called Trump's comments "demeaning... and wrong."

"It's clearly destructive and it has the potential to being dangerous as well," he said.

Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a GOP moderate, called Trump's comments "absolutely unacceptable."

Hillary Clinton, the Democratic nominee for president in 2016, turned Trump's words against him, taunting that he is correct in saying the four U.S. House members come from a country whose government is "a complete and total catastrophe" -- because "they're from America."

They're from America, and you're right about one thing: Currently their government is a complete and total catastrophe. https://t.co/NvsnFSN8mb — Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) July 14, 2019

Sen. Steve Daines of Montana was among the very few Republicans defending a missive that was both widely offensive and factually unsupported.

"Montanans are sick and tired of listening to anti-American, anti-Semite, radical Democrats trash our country and our ideals. This is America. We're the greatest country in the world. I stand with @realdonaldtrump," he tweeted.

Trump's comments were aimed at Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.; Ilhan Omar, D-Minn.; Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass.; and Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich. The "Squad" of young charismatic liberals has been giving fits to Pelosi. They've also incurred Trump's ire by criticizing him for mistreatment of migrants.

Like Trump, Ocasio-Cortez was born in New York City -- she in the Bronx, he in Queens.

Pressley was born in Cincinnati, and Tlaib was born in Detroit -- major cities in important electoral battlegrounds.

Omar is the only naturalized citizen among the group. She was born in Mogadishu, Somalia, and grew up in Minnesota.

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POTUS was wrong to say any American citizen, whether in Congress or not, has any ‘home’ besides the U.S. But I just as strongly believe non-citizens who abuse our immigration laws should be sent home immediately, & Reps who refuse to defend America should be sent home 11/2020. — Chip Roy (@chiproytx) July 15, 2019

Rep. Al Green, a Houston Democrat who has demanded Trump's impeachment nearly since he took office on the grounds that Trump's racial divisiveness makes him unsuited to lead the United States, sought an impeachment vote Tuesday night.

Trump's "racism, anti-Semitism, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, and Islamophobia can no longer be tolerated or ignored. We must impeach," he tweeted on Monday.

.@realDonaldTrump’s racism, anti-Semitism, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, and Islamophobia can no longer be tolerated or ignored. We must impeach. #RacistPresident #ImpeachNow — Congressman Al Green (@RepAlGreen) July 15, 2019

After a day of uproar over his initial tweet, Trump continued to stir the controversy on Monday with fresh attacks on the "Radical Left Congresswomen," asserting that they should "apologize to our Country, the people of Israel and even to the Office of the President, for the foul language they have used, and the terrible things they have said. So many people are angry at them & their horrible & disgusting actions!"

At a news conference held by the four late Monday, Pressley said Americans should "not take the bait" from Trump and should instead focus on their own agenda, even as the lawmakers called for Democrats to take up impeachment proceedings against the president.

When will the Radical Left Congresswomen apologize to our Country, the people of Israel and even to the Office of the President, for the foul language they have used, and the terrible things they have said. So many people are angry at them & their horrible & disgusting actions! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 15, 2019

That was among the Trump tweets that Roy retweeted without comment -- amplifying the message without distancing himself from it.

Democrats have piled on, and some sought to use Trump's comments as a bludgeon against GOP lawmakers.

"The President doubling down on his Twitter tirade is just the latest part of his racist and obscene behavior towards people of color across our country and the world," said Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Fort Worth.

Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-Dallas, called the foursome "extraordinary women who have dedicated their lives to serving our country," and called on fellow lawmakers to condemn Trump's "hateful words. "As Members of the most diverse Congress in the history of our country, it is our duty to speak out against racist and xenophobic attacks -- especially when coming from the President."

Jana Lynne Sanchez, a Democrat who lost to Wright last fall, reported Trump to Twitter "for abusive and racist tweets." Rather than take another shot at Wright, she's running the campaign for another Democrat seeking that seat, Waxahachie attorney Stephen Daniel, whose business partner is Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins.

I’ve reported @realDonaldTrump to Twitter for abusive and racist tweets. #MakeAmericaSaneAgain — Jana Lynne Sanchez (@janasanchez) July 15, 2019

Trump couched his attack on the congresswomen as a critique of their own criticism of Israel.

That didn't go over well with Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO and national director of the Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish group that monitors hate speech. He noted that the group has publicly disagreed with the lawmakers on some issues but said that by painting them as foreigners, "the president is echoing the racist talking points of white nationalists and cynically using the Jewish people and the state of Israel as a shield to double down on his remarks."

Kulkarni wasn't the only Democratic challenger using the comments against an incumbent.

Pritesh Gandhi, a physician who described himself as "the son of immigrants," is hoping to unseat Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Austin, and challenged him to speak out.

"Nobody should be surprised that President Trump is racist. But let's not lose sight of the deafening silence from leading Republicans today," he said. "Silence is agreement; condemn this hate, Congressman McCaul."

Washington correspondents Tom Benning and Madeleine Ngo contributed to this report.