Trump accused of suggesting ‘someone shoot Hillary Clinton’
WILMINGTON, North Carolina — Donald Trump ignited a fresh political firestorm Tuesday by saying gun-rights supporters might still find a way to stop Hillary Clinton, even if she should defeat him and then name anti-gun Supreme Court justices. Democrats pounced, accusing him of openly encouraging violence against his opponent.
The Republican U.S. presidential nominee has been working this week to move past distracting campaign disputes, but once again he put himself at the centre of a blazing controversy.
First, he falsely claimed that Clinton, his Democratic opponent, wants to “essentially abolish the Second Amendment.” She has said repeatedly that she supports the Second Amendment right to own guns, though she backs stricter gun control measures.
Trump then noted the power Clinton would have to nominate justices to the high court.
“By the way, if she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do, folks. Although the Second Amendment people — maybe there is, I don’t know,” Trump told supporters at a rally in Wilmington, North Carolina. “But I’ll tell you what. That will be a horrible day.”
The reaction from Democrats was immediate. Clinton’s campaign manager, Robby Mook, said: “This is simple — what Trump is saying is dangerous. A person seeking to be the president of the United States should not suggest violence in any way.”
Later, as the uproar grew, Trump said: “Give me a break.” Interviewed on Fox News, he said everyone in his audience knew he was referring to the power of voters and “there can be no other interpretation.”
Trump’s campaign sought to quell the controversy with a statement that blamed the “dishonest media” for misinterpretation. Trump’s running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, said his boss was talking about the election choice for pro-gun voters, not encouraging violence.
But Trump’s foes were unconvinced and unforgiving.
Tim Kaine, the Democratic vicepresidential nominee, said “of course” the Republicans were trying to explain away Trump’s comments, but added: “I think it was just revealing and I don’t find the attempt to roll it back persuasive at all.”
Priorities USA, a political action committee that supports Clinton, said Trump had “suggested that someone shoot Hillary Clinton.” Across the country, Democratic House and Senate candidates piled on, working to tie Trump’s comments to their GOP opponents.
The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, which has endorsed Clinton, said Trump was encouraging gun violence “based on conspiracy theory about Hillary Clinton.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, wrote on Twitter: “Trump makes death threats because he’s a pathetic coward who can’t handle the fact that he’s losing to a girl.”
The National Rifle Association, the gun lobby that has endorsed Trump, came to his defence. The group wrote on Twitter that “there’s nothing we can do” if Clinton is elected, urging voters to defeat her in November.
The controversy overwhelmed Trump’s intended campaign-trail focus: the economic plan he unveiled a day earlier and was promoting during a series of rallies in the most competitive general election states. It also reinforced the concern, voiced by many worried Republicans, that he cannot stay disciplined and avoid inflammatory remarks that imperil not only his White House prospects but the re-election chances of many GOP lawmakers.
At another rally on Tuesday in Fayetteville, Trump was careful with his words. He repeated his argument that Clinton poses a threat to gun rights, but avoided any talk about advocates taking matters into their own hands.
Former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, introducing him, blamed the controversy on “disgusting” journalists.
Clinton’s supporters hope the latest Trump trip-up will lead yet more of his fellow Republicans to defect. On Monday, Maine Sen. Susan Collins became the latest to declare she won’t vote for her party’s nominee, explicitly pointing to his “constant stream of cruel comments.”
The U.S. Secret Service, responsible for both Clinton’s and Trump’s protection, said it was aware of what Trump had said, but declined to say whether it planned to investigate.
Contrary to Trump’s remarks, Clinton has made her support for gun rights a key piece of her stump speech in a bid to pre-empt attacks from Trump and groups like the NRA. Still, she supports reinstating a federal assault weapons ban, expanding background checks and barring purchases by domestic abusers, among other steps.