US President Donald Trump digs in against critics of his violence response

He defiantly reiterated his opposition to removal of monuments to pro-slavery Civil war Confederacy

US President Donald Trump hit back on Thursday at critics of his response to racial violence in the Virginia city of Charlottesville, and defiantly reiterated his opposition to the removal of monuments to the pro-slavery Civil war Confederacy. 
 

Trump has been engulfed in controversy, strongly rebuked by members of his own Republican Party and snubbed by a string of American business leaders, over his reaction to the unrest in Charlottesville on Saturday. 
 

In a series of Twitter posts on Thursday, Trump showed no sign of backing down. 

He criticised efforts in a growing number of US states, including Florida, Kentucky,