President Barack Obama talks about the war on terrorism and efforts to degrade and destroy the Islamic State group, during a news conference at the Pentagon in Washington, Thursday, Aug. 4, 2016. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) 
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks at a rally at Abraham Lincoln High School, in Des Moines, Iowa, Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2016. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) FRANKLIN, Tenn. - U.S. Sen. Bob Corker said Thursday that GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump is going "far too far" by asserting President Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are "founders" of Islamic State.
However, the Chattanooga Republican isn't backing off his support of the controversial billionaire despite his criticism there and on another statement Trump made this week saying Second Amendment supporters may be able to stop Clinton from naming Supreme Court justices who could weaken gun rights.
Some interpreted the remarks as a threat to Clinton. Trump strongly denied that, but a number of Republican officials are cringing.
"I think that those type of comments had no place in our public discourse and was disappointed to hear them," Corker said of Trump's Second Amendment statement.
Nonetheless, Corker, who is Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman and was under consideration as Trump's running mate before withdrawing from consideration, said he continues to back Trump.
"My consistent comment has been that I plan to support the Republican nominee, and that's the same thing I've said for six months," Corker said. "No differentiation on that."
Trump ignited a furor at a Florida rally earlier this week when he made remarks about both Obama and Democratic presidential nominee and former U.S. Secretary of State Clinton in conjunction with ISIS, also known as the Islamic State or a second acronym, ISIL.
"ISIS is honoring President Obama," he said. "He is the founder of ISIS. He is the founder of ISIS, okay? He is the founder. He founded ISIS. And I would say the co-founder would be crooked Hillary Clinton."
Trump wasn't backing off on Thursday, telling a nationally syndicated conservative talk radio host with regard to Clinton that "ISIS will hand her the MVP award. The only competition is Barack Obama; it's been between the two of them."
Earlier, Corker said Obama and Clinton had made a "number of decisions" in 2011 that helped fuel the rise of the Islamic State, such as failing to take action in the Syrian civil war and providing "no follow up" in Libya, where he said chaos ensued after the government was "decapitated."
"That certainly created some conditions for ISIS to flourish," said Corker.
Corker, who spoke with reporters following an address to Tennessee Farm Bureau leaders in Franklin, said: "To say that an elected official in our country founded a terrorist organization like ISIS is taking the facts that took place in 2011 and carrying that far too far."
At a campaign rally earlier this week, Trump said "Hillary wants to abolish - essentially abolish - the Second Amendment. By the way, if she gets to pick, if she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do folks. Although the Second Amendment people, maybe there is. I don't know. But I tell you what, that will be a horrible day if Hillary gets to put her judges in. Right now we're tied."
Corker, who at one point weighed running for the Republican nomination himself, offered Trump some advice: "If I were running for president, I'd stay away from personality issues and I would stick to the policy issues that are to affect people's lives in a positive way."
He cited two areas on which he'd spend most of his time talking.
"One would be the economic issues," Corker said. "I would not miss an opportunity every day about how I'm going to affect people's economic lives [for the] better. And secondly, I would focus on the role of the U.S. in the world and how it's going to affect people's economic and personal security."
Corker added that "every single place I went, that's what I would talk about. It just seems that for some reason that's not what's happening. And I think that's what we're seeing reflected in the polls, candidly."
Contact Andy Sher at asher@timesfreepress.com or 615-255-0550. Follow on twitter at AndySher1.