The Trump campaign criticized “fake news” reporters early Friday after several outlets alleged that former President Donald Trump suggested Liz Cheney, a former GOP congresswoman turned Kamala Harris surrogate, should be “fired upon.”
Trump’s remarks at a Thursday night Arizona event with ex-Fox News host Tucker Carlson sparked the media’s fury.
He labeled Cheney a “radical war hawk,” accusing her of making wartime decisions while comfortably seated in Washington. “Whe always wanted to go to war,” he remarked.
“Let’s put her with a rifle, standing there with nine barrels shooting at her, okay? Let’s see how she feels about it, you know, when the guns are trained on her face,” Trump added.
This is how dictators destroy free nations. They threaten those who speak against them with death. We cannot entrust our country and our freedom to a petty, vindictive, cruel, unstable man who wants to be a tyrant. #Womenwillnotbesilenced #VoteKamala https://t.co/URH5s929Sa
— Liz Cheney (@Liz_Cheney) November 1, 2024
Cheney fired back, likening Trump to a dictator, and claimed his rhetoric amounted to a threat on her life.
“This is how dictators destroy free nations. They threaten those who speak against them with death. We cannot entrust our country and our freedom to a petty, vindictive, cruel, unstable man who wants to be a tyrant. #Womenwillnotbesilenced #VoteKamala,” she tweeted.
CNN’s Kasie Hunt reported Friday that Trump’s “violent rhetoric” was escalating, suggesting Cheney, one of his vocal critics, “should be fired upon.”
“Of course, violent rhetoric is not new for Trump,” Hunt continued. “But this stark imagery represents an escalation at a tense moment when the country is on edge heading into Tuesday.
Trump campaign Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt countered the media uproar, accusing “every FAKE NEWS reporter” of twisting Trump’s words.
“President Trump was CLEARLY explaining that warmongers like Liz Cheney are very quick to start wars and send other Americans to fight them, rather than go into combat themselves,” Leavitt posted.