Trump Reveals First Targets on Military Hit List in Shocking Interview
Hafiz Rashid
SALON
Wed, October 16, 2024
At a Fox News town hall on women’s issues in Georgia taped Tuesday evening, Donald Trump spoke further of the “enemy within” that he wants to use the military against, specifically naming Democratic Representative Adam Schiff as well as former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her family. *
“It is the enemy from within. And they’re very dangerous. They’re marxists and they’re communists and they’re fascists and they’re sick.” Trump said to Fox’s Harris Faulker. “I use a guy like Adam Schiff. They made up the Russia Russia Russia hoax.”
Trump went on to claim that enemies like Russia and China could be handled, but the Democrats were a different story. “The more difficult are, you know, the Pelosis, these people, they’re so sick and they’re so evil,” Trump said, adding that he was investigated “more times than Al Capone.”
“They’re the threat to democracy,” Trump said about his Democratic opponents to applause from the supportive audience.
In a weekend interview with Fox News’s Maria Bartiromo, Trump made an ominous threat to use the military against his critics and intervene in the election, claiming that they are a bigger threat than migrants, a favorite bugbear of his. His supporters struggled to defend his comments, with many Republicans denying them altogether.
Trump has never been a friend of Pelosi, although he did claim in August that one of her daughters said the two would be “perfect together,” which drew a vehement denial from one of said daughters, Christine Pelosi. Trump was also among many of the Republicans who laughed at the violent attack against Nancy’s husband, Paul, in 2022.
The former House speaker has never minced words about Trump, making it clear on January 6, 2021 how much she thought he was a threat to democracy, and highlighting in her book the warnings she received on Trump’s mental health from doctors and mental health professionals. As House speaker, she played a major role in both of Trump’s impeachments in 2019 and 2021. Trump’s targeting of Nancy Pelosi and her family is another way in which he plans to take revenge against his enemies if he wins in November.
Wed, October 16, 2024
At a Fox News town hall on women’s issues in Georgia taped Tuesday evening, Donald Trump spoke further of the “enemy within” that he wants to use the military against, specifically naming Democratic Representative Adam Schiff as well as former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her family. *
“It is the enemy from within. And they’re very dangerous. They’re marxists and they’re communists and they’re fascists and they’re sick.” Trump said to Fox’s Harris Faulker. “I use a guy like Adam Schiff. They made up the Russia Russia Russia hoax.”
Trump went on to claim that enemies like Russia and China could be handled, but the Democrats were a different story. “The more difficult are, you know, the Pelosis, these people, they’re so sick and they’re so evil,” Trump said, adding that he was investigated “more times than Al Capone.”
“They’re the threat to democracy,” Trump said about his Democratic opponents to applause from the supportive audience.
In a weekend interview with Fox News’s Maria Bartiromo, Trump made an ominous threat to use the military against his critics and intervene in the election, claiming that they are a bigger threat than migrants, a favorite bugbear of his. His supporters struggled to defend his comments, with many Republicans denying them altogether.
Trump has never been a friend of Pelosi, although he did claim in August that one of her daughters said the two would be “perfect together,” which drew a vehement denial from one of said daughters, Christine Pelosi. Trump was also among many of the Republicans who laughed at the violent attack against Nancy’s husband, Paul, in 2022.
The former House speaker has never minced words about Trump, making it clear on January 6, 2021 how much she thought he was a threat to democracy, and highlighting in her book the warnings she received on Trump’s mental health from doctors and mental health professionals. As House speaker, she played a major role in both of Trump’s impeachments in 2019 and 2021. Trump’s targeting of Nancy Pelosi and her family is another way in which he plans to take revenge against his enemies if he wins in November.
Trump Tells All-Women Event The Pelosis are ‘Enemy Within’
Mini Racker, Mary Ann Akers
Wed, October 16, 2024
Megan Varner/Getty Images
Donald Trump told an all-woman town hall in Georgia on Wednesday that he's not “unhinged” as he doubled down, identifying the “enemy from within” as Nancy Pelosi and her husband who was nearly killed.
He aimed his fire at the former House Speaker, who nearly single-handedly snatched an easy election victory from Trump when she led the charge to oust President Joe Biden from the race, leaving Trump running dead even against a more formidable opponent.
“I wasn't unhinged. You know what they are?” he said, winding up to respond to Kamala Harris’ assessment of him as “increasingly unstable and unhinged” for suggesting he would turn the U.S military against everyday American citizens. “They are a party of sound bites.”
Kamala Harris Warns ‘Unhinged’ Trump Poses ‘Huge Risk to America’
“Because they are, they're very different, and it is the enemy from within, and they're very dangerous. They're Marxists and Communists and fascists,” Trump, 78, said at the Fox News town hall, as he meandered his way to his own sound byte.
Fox News host Harris Faulkner played a clip of Trump's “enemy within” trope for the town hall audience Wednesday, however, Fox apparently cencored the part where Trump threatened to use military violence against U.S. citizens.
Forget about China and Russia, Trump said. ”The more difficult part—the Pelosis. These people, they're so sick and they're so evil.” Those would be the speaker and her husband, Paul Pelosi, who was nearly bludgeoned to death in a politically motivated attack in 2022.
“If they would spend their time trying to make America great again, we would have—it would be so easy to make this country great. But when I heard about that, they were saying I was, like, threatening,” Trump said, insisting, “I'm not threatening anybody. They’re the ones doing the threatening.”
He railed about the Democrats’ “phony investigations” against him, including the investigation into his 2016 campaign’s ties to Russia.
“I've been investigated more than Alphonse Capone,” the former president said. “He was the greatest—no, it’s true—it's called weaponization of government. It’s a terrible thing. They are a threat to democracy.”
Trump Makes Baffling ‘Father of IVF’ Claim at Fox Town Hall
Though he didn’t make a lot of sense, the women at the Fox News town hall roared as Faulkner tried to move on.
“I’m glad I got that out,” Trump said at the women’s event in the crucial Southern battleground state.
The 2024 Republican presidential candidate also scored points when most in the audience raised their hands after Faulkner asked if they were worried about “biological men and boys competing against women and girls in sports.”
“It’s so crazy,” Trump said. “You just ban it. President bans it, you just don’t let it happen.”
The event concluded with questions about in vitro fertilization, and Trump declaring, “I’m the father of IVF.”
The Daily Beast.
"Increasingly unstable and unhinged": Trump's "enemy from within" comments worry Democrats
Marin Scotten
SALON
Wed, October 16, 2024
Donald Trump DAVID DEE DELGADO/AFP via Getty Images
Former President Donald Trump remained adamant that Democrats are “enemies from within" during a taped town hall interview on Fox News on Tuesday night, NBC reported.
The Republican nominee previously made the comment about Democrats on Fox News’ “Sunday Futures,” when he referred to Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and other prominent Dems as “lunatics” and a threat to national security.
“I always say, we have two enemies, we have the outside enemy, and then we have the enemy from within, and the enemy from within, in my opinion, is more dangerous than China, Russia and all these countries,” Trump told Fox News host Maria Bartiromo.
He also suggested deploying the military on “radical left lunatics” to deal with potential Election Day chaos.
Vice President Kamala Harris was quick to point out the authoritarian nature of Trump’s comments at a rally in Pennsylvania on Sunday.
“He considers anyone who doesn’t support or who will not bend to his will, an enemy of the country,” Harris told the crowd. “It’s a serious issue.” She added that a second Trump term would be a “huge risk for America and dangerous.”
“Donald Trump is increasingly unstable and unhinged,” said the Democratic nominee.
But Trump defended his comments on Tuesday night, telling Fox News’ Harris Faulkner and the audience of all-women voters that he, nor his comments are unhinged. The 78-year-old maintained that Democrats are “sick” and “evil,” according to reporting from NBC.
“We have China, we have Russia, we have all these countries. If you have a smart president, they can all be handled. The more difficult are, you know, the Pelosis, these people, they’re so sick and they’re so evil,” Trump said.
The town hall interview taped in Cumming, Georgia will air Wednesday morning.
Trump's critics have increasingly sounded the alarm over the former president's rhetoric.
“There is not a case in American history where a presidential candidate has run for office on a promise that they would exact retribution against anyone they perceive as not supporting them in the campaign,” Ian Bassin, a former associate White House counsel who heads the advocacy group Protect Democracy, told The New York Times. “It’s so fundamentally, outrageously beyond the pale of how this country has worked that it’s hard to articulate how insane it is.”
Trump's 'enemy from within' threat spurs critics' alarm about his authoritarian shift
Wed, October 16, 2024
Donald Trump DAVID DEE DELGADO/AFP via Getty Images
Former President Donald Trump remained adamant that Democrats are “enemies from within" during a taped town hall interview on Fox News on Tuesday night, NBC reported.
The Republican nominee previously made the comment about Democrats on Fox News’ “Sunday Futures,” when he referred to Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and other prominent Dems as “lunatics” and a threat to national security.
“I always say, we have two enemies, we have the outside enemy, and then we have the enemy from within, and the enemy from within, in my opinion, is more dangerous than China, Russia and all these countries,” Trump told Fox News host Maria Bartiromo.
He also suggested deploying the military on “radical left lunatics” to deal with potential Election Day chaos.
Vice President Kamala Harris was quick to point out the authoritarian nature of Trump’s comments at a rally in Pennsylvania on Sunday.
“He considers anyone who doesn’t support or who will not bend to his will, an enemy of the country,” Harris told the crowd. “It’s a serious issue.” She added that a second Trump term would be a “huge risk for America and dangerous.”
“Donald Trump is increasingly unstable and unhinged,” said the Democratic nominee.
But Trump defended his comments on Tuesday night, telling Fox News’ Harris Faulkner and the audience of all-women voters that he, nor his comments are unhinged. The 78-year-old maintained that Democrats are “sick” and “evil,” according to reporting from NBC.
“We have China, we have Russia, we have all these countries. If you have a smart president, they can all be handled. The more difficult are, you know, the Pelosis, these people, they’re so sick and they’re so evil,” Trump said.
The town hall interview taped in Cumming, Georgia will air Wednesday morning.
Trump's critics have increasingly sounded the alarm over the former president's rhetoric.
“There is not a case in American history where a presidential candidate has run for office on a promise that they would exact retribution against anyone they perceive as not supporting them in the campaign,” Ian Bassin, a former associate White House counsel who heads the advocacy group Protect Democracy, told The New York Times. “It’s so fundamentally, outrageously beyond the pale of how this country has worked that it’s hard to articulate how insane it is.”
Trump's 'enemy from within' threat spurs critics' alarm about his authoritarian shift
ALEXANDRA HUTZLER
Tue, October 15, 2024
Donald Trump, in a recent interview, suggested political opponents are more of a threat to the U.S. than top foreign adversaries such as China and Russia when it comes to the 2024 election.
"I think the bigger problem are the people from within," Trump told Fox News anchor Maria Bartiromo. "We have some very bad people. We have some sick people, radical left lunatics."
Then he floated the idea of deploying the military against them on American soil, arguing without proof they would be more likely to sow chaos on Nov. 5 than his supporters -- despite what transpired on Jan. 6, 2021.
"I think it should be very easily handled by, if necessary, by National Guard, or if really necessary, by the military, because they can't let that happen," Trump added.
MORE: How Trump could use the military against the 'radical left'
The dark comments highlight Trump's increasing bend toward authoritarian rhetoric in his third White House campaign, some political scientists told ABC News.
"It's really classic authoritarian discourse," said Steven Levitsky, a Harvard University professor and author of "How Democracies Die," citing examples from 1930s Europe and 1960s Latin America.
"In each of these cases, autocrats used exactly this language: there's an enemy within that's more dangerous than our external enemies and that justifies the use of extra-constitutional measures," he said. "How many times does Trump have to use this rhetoric before we realize that this is not a normal election?"
PHOTO: Former President Donald Trump holds up his fist as he walks offstage at the end of a campaign rally at the Butler Farm Show fairgrounds in Butler, Pa., Oct. 05, 2024. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Trump's "enemy from within" comments come after a history of praising authoritarian leaders in public, including Hungary's Viktor Orban and China's Xi Jinping. He's also threatened to jail election workers, pledged to take on the civil service and to enact retribution on political enemies if elected -- all of which would significantly stretch the normal limits of executive power.
Vice President Kamala Harris, playing clips of his Fox News comments, painted Trump as "increasingly unstable and unhinged" and "out for unchecked power" at a Pennsylvania rally on Monday.
"He considers anyone who doesn't support him or who will not bend to his will an enemy of our country. It's a serious issue," Harris said. "He is saying that he would use the military to go after them."
Harris added, "This is among the reasons I believe so strongly that a second Trump term would be a huge risk for America and dangerous."
MORE: Trump takes dark rhetoric to new level in final weeks of 2024 campaign: ANALYSIS
Meanwhile, some Republicans attempted to downplay Trump's comments.
Ohio Sen. JD Vance, Trump's running mate, said he thought they were related to illegal migrants -- despite Trump specifically shifting his conversation with Bartiromo away from undocumented immigrants or foreign actors toward who he called "radical left lunatics."
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican, tried to make a similar argument on CNN, in what turned into a tense exchange with host Jake Tapper as Youngkin said he "didn't believe" that Trump was talking about using the military against Democrats.
The Trump campaign, too, suggested the former president's comments were related to immigration.
"The Harris-Biden administration has unconscionably abused our refugee and asylum systems, and turned them into programs to import mass numbers of unvetted migrants from the most dangerous countries on earth, at the expense of Christians and other persecuted religious minorities who those programs were intended to help," spokesperson Steven Cheung said in a statement to ABC News.
PHOTO: Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign rally at Erie Insurance Arena, in Erie, Pa., Oct. 14, 2024. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)
Critics expressed concern not only about Trump's comments but how they're being received by the GOP.
"All the time in authoritarian states you see branding of some faction of the political opposition not as loyal opposition but as enemy opposition," said Kim Lane Scheppele, a professor of sociology and international affairs at Princeton University.
Scheppele noted the U.S. has some history with this, such as Republican President Richard Nixon and GOP Wisconsin Sen. Joseph McCarthy's abuses of power to go after perceived political foes.
But there is a key distinction between then and now, she said, in that Nixon and McCarthy were ostracized by their peers.
MORE: Johnson punts on GOP rhetoric, 2020 election outcome
"This one is really different because Trump's got this mass movement and a set of people who are willing to fight for him," Scheppele said.
Levitsky said so long as Republicans are standing by Trump, "democracy is going to be in trouble."
"I think the most shocking thing is not what Trump said, but the silence that we hear in response to it, particularly among conservative elites who know better, or who should know better," Levitsky said.
Trump's 'enemy from within' threat spurs critics' alarm about his authoritarian shift originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Pelosi: Saying Trump’s name is ‘like swearing’
Lauren Irwin
Wed, October 16, 2024
Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) says she tries to avoid saying former President Trump’s name out loud.
In a recent podcast interview, the California representative said naming Trump is “like swearing” and joked that she hopes she doesn’t “burn in hell” for the profanity.
Pelosi, in the interview with The Guardian’s Jonathan Freedland and others, referred to Trump as “what’s-his-name.”
“I hardly ever say his name,” she said. “I think it’s a grotesque word.”
Freedland asked to confirm that Pelosi was “talking about Donald Trump,” and she confirmed she was.
“I grew up Catholic, as I am now. If you said a bad word, you could burn in hell if you didn’t have a chance to confess, so I don’t want to take any chances,” she said.
Later in the interview, she broke her own rule and uttered the GOP presidential nominee’s name.
“When we talk about democracy being on the ballot, it’s a woman’s issue, but it’s an everybody issue. When we talk about freedom of speech, do you see now that Trump is talking …,” Pelosi trailed off.
“I said his name, oh my gosh,” she added. “I hope I don’t burn in hell.”
The Speaker emerita, who has long been one of Trump’s most vocal critics, was part of the behind-the-scenes effort to get President Biden off the Democratic ticket following his disastrous debate performance against the former president in June. She has gone all-in for Vice President Harris, appearing at multiple campaign events with her in California.
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