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Since the early days of the 2016 presidential campaign, Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr. has been a staunch supporter of Donald Trump. For some students and alumni ofthe evangelical Christian school inLynchburg, Va., Libertys perceived alignment with the president has been a source of shame and anger, a group of graduates wrotelast week.

Last week, manyreached their breaking point. After Trumps equivocation about neo-Nazi groups followingthe violence in Charlottesville, Falwell once again voiced his unwavering support for the president, tweeting that he was so proud of Trump forhis bold truthful statement on the tragedy.

President Trump on Aug. 15 said that "there's blame on both sides" for the violence that erupted in Charlottesville on Aug. 12. (Bastien Inzaurralde/The Washington Post)

In response,Liberty Universitygraduates are calling on fellow alumni to take a stand against by returning their diplomas. They are also writing letters to Falwells office and to the Board of Trustees, calling for his removal.More than 260 people have joined a Facebook group titled Return your diploma to LU.

By publicly revoking all ties, all support present and future, the graduates hope to send a message to the school that could jeopardize future enrollment, finances and funding, according to the Facebook group. They are urging graduates to return their diplomas to Falwells office by Sept. 5.

In addition, several alumni have written letter to university officials calling on Falwell to disavow Trumps statements, NPR reported. In it, the graduates said Falwells characterization of Trumps remarks were incompatible with Liberty Universitys stated values, and incompatible with a Christian witness.

This sort of sends a wake-up call that you cant just align the entire university with Donald Trumps stance on a whim, Chris Gaumer, a former Student Government Association president and a 2006 graduate,told CNN.

[Liberty University students protest association with Trump]

Gaumer wrote on Facebook thatLiberty University graduates are ashamed, embarrassed, horrified. And sending back their diplomas is the least we like minded can do.

On Instagram, he also wrote, Many reasons to return LU degree, like a class called Creation Studies, but no reason more important than Falwell Jr. backing Trump backing white supremacists.

Responding to the students criticism on ABCs The Week Sunday, Falwell attempted to clarify his stance and said the students misunderstood him.

Falwell, who attended law school at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, said Trump left the door open for the incident to be considered domestic terrorism.

Hehas inside information that I dont have, Falwell said on The Week. I dont know if there were historical purists there who were trying to preserve some statues.

Falwell called the Charlottesville clashes pure evil versus good and said theres no good white supremacist.

I understand how some people could misunderstand his words, Falwell said of Trump. Yes, he could be more polished and politically correct but thats the reason I supported him, because hes not.

Most of Trumps evangelical advisers have refrained from criticizing him for his response to Charlottesville. But on Friday, New York City megachurch pastor A.R. Bernard announced that he had stepped down from the unofficial board of evangelical advisers to Trump, The Washington Posts Sarah Pulliam Bailey reported. Bernards Brooklyn-based Christian Cultural Center, which claims 37,000 in membership, has been described by the New York Times as the largest evangelical church in New York City.

Falwell, son of the late televangelist Jerry Falwell, has served as an essential evangelical voice in support of Trump. In some instances, his university community has followed suit. Students at the school voted overwhelmingly for Trump in November.Of the 3,205 votes cast on campus, Trump took 2,739, while Hillary Clinton received just 140.

As The Posts Joe Heim wrote:

Perhaps no Christian leader in the United States has more closely aligned himself with Trump than Falwell. The Liberty president delivered a glowing tribute to Trump during a campaign visit in January 2016. And his support was critical after the release in October of the Access Hollywood video in which Trump was overheard bragging lewdly about groping and trying to have sex with women. Falwell went to bat for Trump, saying that his comments were reprehensible but that were all sinners, every one of us. Weve all done things we wish we hadnt.

In May,Trump delivered the commencement address to Libertys Class of 2017.

President Trump delivered his first commencement address as president at Liberty University, a Christian school in Lynchburg, Va. (The Washington Post)

Many of the students at Liberty, the nations largest Christian university, have been critical of Trump since before the election. In October, a statement issued by the group Liberty United Against Trump admonished Trump as well as Falwell for defending the then-candidate after he made the vulgar comments about women in the 2005 video. In the weeks that followed, more than 2,000 Liberty students and faculty signed the statement.

Falwell has shown himself to be unabashedly in service of money and power, at the expense of others, not of the message of the gospel he claims, Liberty graduates wrote in the Facebook group for the diploma return protest.He is unfit to lead any institution, but particularly one that professes a moral, ethical, or religious mission.

Many graduates on social media declared their intentions to join the protest and write their own letters to university officials.

Truth is, Ive been ashamed of the source of my diploma since long before Jerry Jr. started backing Trump, one alumna, Lauren Martin Day, wrote on Facebook.Grateful to know there are some other sensible alums decrying that deplorable institution.

She added that she took Liberty University off her resume over a decade ago and never looked back.

In a similar vein, 2002 graduate Rebekah Tilleytold NPR that she no longer wanted to be associated with her alma mater because the name can be so loaded.

Theres such a strong affiliation now between Liberty University and President Trump that you know that reflects badly on all alumni, Tilley said.

Not everyone supported the efforts to return diplomas. Some stood byFalwell, and others criticized the students as snowflakes.

Phil Wagner, who received both his bachelors and masters from Liberty University, told NPR that he disagrees with the presidents comments, he wont be sending back hisdegrees.I earned it, Wagner said. I worked hard for it. But he does plan to send a respectful letter to university officials, he added.

The affiliation between Trump and Falwellis even affecting some prospective students.

Chadwick Brawley, who identified himself as an African American Christian Worship Pastor, wrote that he had beenexcited about enrolling in the Doctor of Worship program at Liberty this month.

Postingon Libertys official Facebook page, Brawley wrote that Christian leaders had a valuable opportunity after the hatred, bigotry and violence in Charlottesville to take a stand.

You used your platform to escalate hate and further divide, Brawley wrote to Falwell. Supporting President Trumps lamentable response to the situation showed me who you are, what you support and how youre aligned politically and spiritually. Because of who I am, I find it extremely difficult to align myself with you and Liberty University. The search begins for other schools at which I may apply; schools that will appreciate my African-American heritage, perspective, gifts, genius and money.

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Liberty University graduates return diplomas because of support for Trump by Jerry Falwell Jr. - Washington Post

Donald and Melania Trump announced Saturday that they would not attend this year's Kennedy Center Honors ceremony, which will honor LL Cool J, Lionel Richie, Gloria Estefan, TV producer Norman Lear and dancer-choreographer Carmen de Lavallade.

"Each year, the Kennedy Center honors the careers and achievements of artists who have helped shape cultural life in the United States with a weekend that includes celebrations and events," the White House said Saturday in a statement.

"The president and first lady have decided not to participate in this year's activities to allow the honorees to celebrate without any political distraction. First lady Melania Trump, along with her husband President Donald J. Trump,extend their sincerest congratulations and well wishes to all of this year's award recipients for their many accomplishments."

The event is scheduled for December 3rd at Washington, D.C.'s Kennedy Center, with a broadcast date of December 26th. At the event, celebrating its 40th anniversary, honorees are usually seated with the current President and First Lady of the United States.

Skipping D.C. traditions has become a tradition in itself for Trump, who in April opted not to attend the annual White House Correspondents Dinner.

Trump's decision comes just days after both Lear and de Lavallade said in separate statements that, while they would attend the Kennedy Center Honors ceremony, they were skipping the pre-ceremony reception for honorees at the White House, the New York Times reports.

"In light of the socially divisive and morally caustic narrative that our current leadership is choosing to engage in, and in keeping with the principles that I and so many others have fought for, I will be declining the invitation to attend the reception at the White House," de Lavallade said in a statement.

Lear said he would forego the ceremony because of Trump "has chosen to neglect totally the arts and humanities deliberately defund them and that doesn't rest pleasantly with me."

Richie also admitted he was considering boycotting the event. "I'm gonna just play it by ear," Richie toldTodayTuesday. "I must tell you, I'm not really happy with what's going on right now with the controversies. They're weekly, daily, hourly." A rep for Richie did not respond to a question on if the singer will attend this year's event.

When the Kennedy Center honorees were announced in early August, both LL Cool J and Estefan expressed apprehension about attending the ceremony with Trump.

"I don't have any stunts planned. I'm not saying I need to be there backslapping and all of that, but this time, this one ain't about him," the rapper said in a statement, alluding to Trump. "I'm not going to block my blessings or let the political divide stop me from embracing my art. I'm banking on the goodness and the optimism of people to say: 'You know what? I get it. Let this guy have this honor.'"

Estefan, "a proud immigrant," said in a statement that she would "make clear and express" her views on immigration to Trump. The Cuban-born singer added, "To get this kind of award is so American."

Following the Trumps' decision to not attend the ceremony, the Kennedy Center Honors said in a statement Saturday, "The Kennedy Center respects the decision made today by the office of the President of the United States. In choosing not to participate in this year's Honors activities, the Administration has graciously signaled its respect for the Kennedy Center and ensures the Honors gala remains a deservingly special moment for the Honorees. We are grateful for this gesture."

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Donald Trump Won't Attend Kennedy Center Honors Ceremony - RollingStone.com

NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 15: US President Donald Trump speaks following a meeting on infrastructure at Trump Tower, August 15, 2017 in New York City. He fielded questions from reporters about his comments on the events in Charlottesville, Virginia and white supremacists. (Drew Angerer Getty Images

During his campaign for president, Donald Trump boasted of business prowess, vowing to bring in top executives to help him revive the economy and to personally lobby corporate chiefs to keep jobs in the U.S.

Those CEOs are now abandoning him in a humiliating snub for a president who took great pleasure in summoning corporate titans to the White House and trying to get them to bend to his will.

After widespread criticism for remarks that appeared to confer legitimacy on white supremacists, Trump is facing a mass exodus of the CEOs he once courted, a public repudiation that undermines his image as a businessman and could threaten his policy agenda on everything from taxes to trade.

Trump said Wednesday hes disbanding two advisory groups of American business leaders, after several CEOs quit this week and more were preparing to resign in the wake of his comments that some very fine people were among neo-Nazis protesting at a violent rally in Charlottesville last weekend.

The weeks events threaten to forever tarnish Trumps credentials as a business president, undermining a foundation of his political appeal and weakening the Republican partys core alliance with business interests for as long as he leads the party. The political damage compounds the risk the GOP faces in 2018 midterm elections.

Corporate executives are now making a pragmatic calculation that a Republican presidents brand has become too toxic, said Carlos Gutierrez, chairman of Albright Stonebridge Group, a Washington international strategy firm that advises businesses.

Theres always the risk that CEOs will not have their brand associated with administration initiatives, which is extremely dangerous for the presidents agenda, said Gutierrez, who served as Commerce Secretary under President George W. Bush. The president will need the business community but the business community would rather stay out of the White House.

On Thursday, the Cleveland Clinic announced that after careful consideration, it wouldnt hold its annual fundraiser at Trumps Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida in 2018. The clinics board had been under pressure after almost 1,700 medical students, doctors, nurses and others criticized its use of Mar-a-Lago in an open letter last month. Holding a hospital fundraiser there symbolically and financially supports a politician actively working to decrease access to health care and cut billions of dollars in research funding, the letter said.

Cleveland Clinic CEO Toby Cosgrove had served on the Presidents Strategic and Policy Forum before Trump disbanded it.

Trump opened his presidency highlighting his relationships with titans of industry, regularly bringing in camera crews and reporters to show the nation a president leading discussions that included some of the best-known names in business. The American Manufacturing Council and Strategic and Policy Forum, both disbanded Wednesday, were each heavily promoted during the first days of his presidency, as the White House sought to show its focus on boosting the economy.

Business leaders would often flank the president in the Oval Office as he signed legislation and announced new orders.

With the Republican party in control of the White House, and both houses of Congress, the constant stream of business executives visiting the West Wing was presented by the White House as evidence that Trumps agenda for boosting the economy was in full swing.

Now, as Congress has struggled to pass legislation during the Trump era, the chaos surrounding the White House has served to further undermine Republicans image in the eyes of a risk-averse business community, according to strategists and experts.

Graham Wilson, a Boston University professor who studies the intersection of business and politics, said the scale and depth of feeling in opposition to Trumps statements is too large for executives to ignore.

Standing with Trump at this moment, after his bizarre comments, is just too costly for corporations, Wilson said. This signal from corporate America could also have a broader impact on public opinion and the loyalty of core Republicans to Trump.

Some business-oriented Republicans who had been swallowing very hard over some of Trumps stranger statements now may break away, Wilson said.

Republican officeholders must not just condemn the violence by white-supremacist groups, they must repudiate the position Trump has taken or slide into the moral abyss with him, said Republican strategist Steve Schmidt, who was a top adviser for 2008 presidential nominee John McCain.

Republicans who believe that the possibility of tax reform outweighs the urgent civic necessity of condemning white supremacy extremism and Nazism are as morally obtuse as Trump and are likely to pay a very steep political price, he said.

The public spat between Trump and CEOs comes as the White House and the Republican-led Congress are looking to advance an overhaul of the tax code.

I dont see any business thats going to want to partner with the president on an initiative, said Leslie Dach, a strategic communications consultant in Washington. Because the chance of it bringing them grief is large and the short-term upside is slim.

Even before the controversy surrounding his statements about the events in Charlottesville and the collapse of the economic council, Trumps standing in Gallups daily tracking poll was already near an all-time low for his presidency. Just 36 percent of Americans said they approve of the job hes doing, while 58 percent disapprove, in the poll taken Aug. 13-15.

Kevin Madden, a Republican strategist who was a senior adviser to Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential campaign, said all is not lost for Trump and his relations with corporate America.

The community still has an interest in collaborating on an economic agenda, but they are certainly sending a message, Madden said. This is a different era, where businesses and CEOs are as focused on communicating their companys values in addition to caring about their bottom line.

To the extent businesses back Trump initiatives, it is now more likely to be transactional: one-time support for specific policies that directly help them. Conversely, Trump, who has pushed policies on immigration and trade that are unpopular in the business community, could also see more executives willing to speak out against him when they disagree with his agenda, said Gutierrez.

Businesses had been somewhat reluctant--they dont want to be on the wrong side of the administration, they dont want to be the subject of a tweet, he said. I think that that is quickly fading away."

The blow up may be a sign of things to come. The reality is that the capital has become more challenging terrain for corporate leaders, who take great pains to stay away from controversy, as populists squeeze out pro-business moderates in both the Republican and Democratic parties.

Washington, whether it is on the right or the left, is a risky place right now, said Sam Geduldig, a former Republican congressional aide and now a partner at CGCN Group, a lobbying firm. It is not a place for the weak or the timid.

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Trump's Pro-Business Image Tarnished as CEOs Abandon Him - Fortune

(WASHINGTON) President Donald Trump's racially fraught comments about a deadly neo-Nazi rally have thrust into the open some Republicans' deeply held doubts about his competency and temperament, in an extraordinary public airing of worries and grievances about a sitting president by his own party.

Behind the high-profile denunciations voiced this week by GOP senators once considered Trump allies, scores of other, influential Republicans began to express grave concerns about the state of the Trump presidency. In two dozen interviews with Associated Press reporters across nine states, Republican politicians, party officials, advisers and donors expressed worries about whether Trump has the self-discipline and capability to govern successfully.

Eric Cantor, the former House minority leader from Virginia, said Republicans signaled this week that Trump's handling of the Charlottesville protests was "beyond just a distraction."

"It was a turning point in terms of Republicans being able to say, we're not even going to get close to that," Cantor said.

Chip Lake, a Georgia-based GOP operative who did not vote for Trump in the general election, raised the prospect of the president leaving office before his term is up.

"It's impossible to see a scenario under which this is sustainable under a four-year period," Lake said.

Trump's handling of the protests in Charlottesville, Virginia, has shaken his presidency unlike any of the other self-created crises that have rattled the White House during his seven months in office. Business leaders have bolted from White House councils, wary of being associated with the president. Military leaders distanced themselves from Trump's assertion that "both sides" the white supremacists and the counter-protesters were to blame for the violence that left one protester dead. And some members of Trump's own staff were outraged by his combative assertion that there were "very fine people" among those marching with the white supremacists, neo-Nazis and KKK members.

Importantly, the Republicans interviewed did not line up behind some course of action or an organized break with the president. Some expressed hope the recent shakeup of White House advisers might help Trump get back in control of his message and the GOP agenda.

Still, the blistering and blunt statements from some Republicans have marked a new phase. Until now, the party has largely kept its most troubling doubts about Trump to whispered, private conversations, fearful of alienating the president's loyal supporters and upending long-sought GOP policy goals.

Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker, the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee and a foreign policy ally of the Trump White House, delivered the sharpest criticism of Trump, declaring that the president "has not yet been able to demonstrate the stability nor some of the competence that he needs to" in dealing with crises.

Corker's comments were echoed in the interviews with two dozen Republican officials after Trump expressed his views in Tuesday's press conference. More than half spoke on the record, while the others insisted on anonymity in order to speak candidly about the man who leads their party and remains popular with the majority of GOP voters.

A handful defended Trump without reservation. South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, an early supporter of the president, said he "proudly" stands with Trump and said he was succeeding despite a "constant barrage of negative attacks from the left."

But others said recent events had shifted the dynamic between the president and his party.

"I was never one that was convinced that the president had the character to lead this nation, but I was certainly willing to stand by the president on critical issues once he was elected," said Clarence Mingo, a Republican state treasurer candidate in Ohio. "Now, even where good conservative policies are concerned, that progress is all negated because of his inability to say and do the right things on fundamental issues."

In Kentucky, Republican state senator Whitney Westerfield called Trump's comments after the Charlottesville protests "more than a gaffe."

"I'm concerned he seems to firmly believe in what he's saying about it," Westerfield said.

Trump has survived criticism from establishment Republicans before, most notably when GOP lawmakers across the country distanced themselves from him in the final weeks of the campaign following the release of a video in which the former reality television star is heard making predatory sexual comments about women. Many of those same lawmakers ultimately voted for Trump and rallied around his presidency after his stunning victory.

GOP efforts to align with Trump have largely been driven by political realities. The president still commands loyalty among his core supporters, though some recent polls have suggested a slight weakening there. And while his style is often controversial, many of his statements are often in line with those voters' beliefs, including his support after Charlottesville for protecting Confederate monuments.

Brian Westrate, a small business owner in western Wisconsin who is also chairman of the 3rd Congressional District Republican Party, said Trump supporters long ago decided to embrace the unconventional nature of his presidency.

"I don't think that anything has fundamentally changed between now and when the election was," he said. "The president remains an ill-artful, ill-timed speaker who uses Twitter too often. That's not new. ... The president is still the same guy and the left is still the same left."

Some White House officials do privately worry about slippage in Trump's support from congressional Republicans, particularly in the Senate. GOP senators couldn't cobble together the 50 votes needed to pass a health care overhaul and that same math could continue to be a problem in the fall, as Republicans work on reforming the tax code, which is realistically the party's last opportunity to pass major legislation in 2017.

Tom Davis, a Republican state senator representing a coastal South Carolina district, said that when Trump can move beyond the crisis of the moment, he articulates policies that could help the country's economic situation. But Davis said Trump is also part of the reason not much progress has been made.

"To his discredit, he's been maddeningly inconsistent in advancing those policies, which is part of the reason so little has been accomplished in our nation's capital these past six months," Davis said.

Mike Murphy, a veteran Republican strategist who most recently tried to help Jeb Bush win the 2016 GOP presidential primary, said the early optimism some Republicans felt about their ability to leverage Trump's presidency has all but evaporated in the days following the Charlottesville protests.

"Most party regulars have gone from an initial feeling of guarded optimism that Trump would be able to stumble along while Mitch (McConnell) and (Paul) Ryan do the big lifting and pass our Republican agenda to a current feeling of deep frustration and despair," Murphy said.

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GOP Doubts and Anxieties About Trump Burst Into the Open - TIME

BERLIN There is only one side the good side, cried Eva Kese, mustering a smile as she fought back tears. Your hate has no place here.

Kese, 30,stood Saturday facing a crowd ofabout 500neo-Nazis. They were gathered on the outskirts of the German capital to commemoratethe 30thanniversary of the death of Rudolf Hess, a deputy to Adolf Hitler. The demonstration marked another, more recent anniversary: one week since a march by neo-Nazis and white supremacists in Virginia left one counterprotester dead.

Keseheld up a sign with a hand-drawn pink heart to the neo-Nazis, who countered with a giant banner of their own, reading, I regret nothing.

Choosing her words carefully, she repeated:There is only one side.

President Trump, she said, had drawn her to the streets of the German capital to counter the demonstration. She was incensed by his reaction to the violence in Charlottesville last weekend, in which he blamedhatred, bigotry and violence on many sides.

Donald Trump brought me here today, said Kese, a mother of two who was born in Germany. You can't stand for an ideology that says one side is inferior.

The rally in Berlin was planned before global attention turned to Charlottesville, but it took on new meaning after a week dominated by discussion of the Nazi past.Counterprotesters said they felt new urgency to denounce Germany's dark history particularly in the former capital of the Third Reich after watching it reemerge like a phantomandhauntan American college town.

It's dangerous everywhere, not just in Germany, said Sabine Sauer, 55.

[We have drawn a different lesson from history: How the world is reacting to violence in Charlottesville]

Among the crowd of neo-Nazis, most of whom declined to be interviewed, an elderly man with glasses and a button-down shirt under a white T-shirt said he had been watching events in the United States with delight.

They're finally standing up, said the man, who declined to give his name as other members of the crowd encircled him, preventing him from speaking further. Refusing media interviews was among the directives issued to demonstrators by organizers of the march, German media reported.

Scuffles broke out between neo-Nazis and counterprotesters in Berlin on Aug. 19 during a planned march to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the death of Hitler's first deputy, Rudolf Hess. (Twitter/MartinAdam via Storyful)

The guidelines for the march stipulated by authorities were also extensive and made for a scene starkly at odds with the violent confrontation in Charlottesville. Speech is more strictly policed in Germany than it is in the United States, in large part to keep Nazi ideology at bay.

Followingstrict laws put into place after World War II,demonstratorswere forbidden from chanting Nazi slogans, displaying swastikas and wearing certain military uniforms. They couldn't carry weapons.

Torches were also forbidden, an organizer announced before the march, and only one flag was allowed for every 50 people.

The Hess apologistswere restricted in how they could talk about the prominent Nazi politician, who was convicted of crimes against peace after the war. They were barred from quoting him or playing his speeches.

The destination of the march was the former site of Spandau Prison, where Hess committed suicide in 1987. Soon after, it was demolished ground to powder that was scattered in the North Sea to prevent it from becoming a pilgrimage site for neo-Nazis.

That didn't stop it from being the focusof Saturday's march, whose participants advancethe conspiracy theory that Hess was killed covertly by the British.

But the neo-Nazis never reached the location of the former prison. They proceeded haltingly, flanked by police who kept counterprotesters behind metal barricades. The neo-Nazisremainedmostly quiet, carrying the black, white and red flags of the German Empire.

Nazis out, counterprotestersshouted, as a large crowdmoved to block the road.

After a two-hour stalemate, in which opposing sides were separated by a 30-yard no man's land guarded by police, authorities led the neo-Nazis away from their intended destination, down a side street and back around to the transit station where they had begun.

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'Donald Trump brought me here today': Counterprotesters rout neo-Nazi rally in Berlin - Washington Post