At a Nebraska rally Trump said Iran could take out Los Angeles or San Diego and called that a small price to pay. The White House said he meant cities would have been at risk if a nuclear Iran had not been stopped.
President Donald Trump told supporters in Nebraska on Monday that Iran could take out a US city such as Los Angeles or San Diego, and that this was a small price to pay for keeping the country safe. Reuters quoted him saying the war would be over very soon and would end one way or the other. The remarks were about fuel prices and the Iran war, FactCheck.org reported.
On Tuesday the White House rejected the criticism. Communications director Steven Cheung said the media reaction was not rooted in reality and that Trump was stating US cities would have been threatened if a nuclear Iran had not been stopped.
California Governor Gavin Newsom called the president deranged and dangerous and wrote that Trump was saying foreign enemies should take out Los Angeles and San Diego. Reuters said some fellow Republicans also objected. FactCheck.org said the wording was confusing and that a more plausible reading, given the gas-price context and later White House statement, was that higher pump prices were being framed as the cost of preventing an Iranian threat.
The comments sit against an Iran war Reuters has described as in its seventh or eighth month, with the Strait of Hormuz disrupted. No new military order was announced with the rally remarks.
The dispute on Tuesday was over interpretation of the Monday speech, not a new strike announcement.
People Sentiments Negative
- Gavin Newsom called Trump deranged and dangerous over the city remarks.
- Steven Cheung said Trump was describing a threat that would have existed if a nuclear Iran had not been stopped.