California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) called President Trump "deranged and dangerous" following his comments on Monday that Iran could "take out" Los Angeles and San Diego.
"It's a small price to pay for keeping the world safe, for keeping our country safe," Trump said at a Monday rally in Grand Island, Neb. "Let 'em take out Los Angeles, let 'em take out San Diego."
"After sending the National Guard to occupy California, Donald Trump is now saying our foreign enemies should 'take out' Los Angeles and San Diego," Newsom wrote on social media. "He is deranged and dangerous."
The White House pushed back on California officials' response to Trump's comments, with communications director Steven Cheung saying, "The media freakout over President Trump's comments is not rooted in reality."
“He was clearly stating U.S. cities would have been threatened if a nuclear Iran hadn’t been stopped. America is safer because of the President. Iran has no nuclear, no navy, no air force, and no money,” Cheung wrote on social media.
Encouraging attacks: Newsom and other California politicians believe the president was encouraging violence on their state.
"At least 19 servicemembers have made the ultimate sacrifice in Trump's unauthorized war with Iran — including Noah Tietjens of Nebraska," Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) wrote on the social platform X about Trump's comments in Nebraska.
"Now Trump is in Nebraska inviting an attack on U.S. soil, putting millions of Americans and hundreds of thousands of our servicemembers at risk while trying to get Americans to cheer for an attack on our own country,” Padilla continued. “What kind of Commander in Chief does that?”
Los Angeles's Mayor Karen Bass (D) wrote on the social platform X that Trump's comments "are dangerous and could potentially compromise our safety."
"The role of the president is to protect the country, not actively threaten it and encourage attacks on American lives," Bass continued.
San Diego's mayor Todd Gloria (D) also told the president to "keep our city out of your reckless war talk," in a social media post.
FBI warned California in February: Multiple outlets reported on March 11 that the FBI warned California police departments of potential retaliatory Iranian attacks on California's coastline.
The agency's Joint Terrorism Task Force reportedly sent memos to police departments across the Golden State in late February that Iran allegedly "aspired to conduct a surprise attack" on the state's coastal cities.
On March 12, the day after the FBI report came out, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt pushed back on the FBI's attack claims, saying there was "no such threat from Iran to our homeland."
Trump told reporters at the time that he was not worried about retaliatory strikes on the U.S., according to Reuters.
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➤ TRUMP SPURS ANTI-TRANS BLOWBACK IN SC:
President Trump's anti-trans comments made towards South Carolina Senate candidate Annie Andrews (D), a cisgender mother of three, have stirred up some controversy among Democratic and GOP lawmakers.
"Annie 'T——' Andrews is running against our wonderful Darline Graham [R-S.C.] for the Senate in South Carolina," the president wrote on Truth Social, later repeating the slur.
Andrews stays on message: Andrews responded saying she's "going to work with anyone to put South Carolina first, because lowering costs and making life better for families across our state is going to take all of us working together."
Former South Carolina Gov. David Beasley (R), who was in office from 1995 to 1999, chimed in on the social platform X, calling Trump's comments "abhorrent."
"South Carolina deserves better," Beasley continued. "I urge voters to look at the merits of each candidate and cast their vote accordingly. We must reject politics based on division and hate."
According to current predictions from Decision Desk HQ (DDHQ), Graham has a 72 percent chance of winning.
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