‘Labeling a political opponent as a ‘fascist,’ risks inviting yet another would-be assassin,’ they say.
Republican leaders are sounding the alarm after Vice President Kamala Harris said she believed former President Donald Trump was a fascist. After already two assassination attempts, their concern is that the vice president’s words could inspire even more bids to end Trump’s life.
Harris said at a media event on Wednesday that she thought her rival was a fascist after Trump’s former chief of staff, John Kelly, said in media interviews published the day before that described the former president as a fascist who wants generals “like Hitler’s” who are loyal to him.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) released a joint statement on Oct. 25 urging Harris to stop using “dangerous rhetoric.”
They urged her to stop “escalating the threat environment” and take ongoing and persistent threats against the former president by adversaries of the United States seriously.
“The man who was caught waiting in ambush in Florida left others with a chilling call to arms: ‘It is up to you now to finish the job,’” they said in their joint statement, referring to accused would-be assassin Ryan Routh.
“Labeling a political opponent as a ‘fascist,’ risks inviting yet another would-be assassin to try robbing voters of their choice before Election Day.”
The lawmakers said that Harris must first “abandon the base and irresponsible rhetoric that endangers both American lives and institutions” if she wants the American people to trust her with executive authority.
After Routh’s failed alleged assassination attempt in West Palm Beach, Florida, Johnson and McConnell acknowledge that Harris said, “We all must do our part to ensure that this incident does not lead to more violence.”
However, since then, they said, her words “have proven hollow.”
“In the weeks since that second sobering reminder, the Democratic nominee for President of the United States has only fanned the flames beneath a boiling cauldron of political animus,” they said. ”Her most recent and most reckless invocations of the darkest evil of the 20th century seem to dare it to boil over.”
Former presidential candidate and Trump ally Robert F. Kennedy Jr. also called out Harris’s recent comments, stating on X on Wednesday, “This is the kind of inflammatory poison that divides our nation and inspires assassins.”
Trump and several of his former staff members have recently denounced Kelly’s claims that Harris used to defend her position.
The Epoch Times has reached out to the Harris campaign for comment.
Harris said at a town hall hosted by CNN’s Anderson Cooper on Wednesday that several former Trump administration officials such as former Vice President Mike Pence and former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly are no longer supporting him.
“I think it compels a lot of people to be concerned about the future of our country with Donald Trump at the lead,” Harris said.
When asked if she thinks Trump is a fascist, she said, “Yes, I do.”
Lawrence Wilson contributed to this report.