PoliticsDonald Trump Faces Backlash for Claiming 'Our Country is Going to Cease to Exist' If He's Not Elected President
Former President Donald Trump delivered a campaign speech in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Tuesday, April 2, where he made alarming statements regarding migrant crime and the future of the United States if he is not elected in November.
Speaking in front of law enforcement officers, Trump blamed migrants, referring to them as "animals," for the nation's issues. He insinuated an invasion by adversarial countries like China, claiming they were sending only "military age" men across the border.
Mavi said she has a tight-knit brood and she would known if that had happened.
Trump escalated his fear-mongering by stating, "Because if we don’t win on November 5th, I think our country is going to cease to exist. It could be the last election we ever have. I actually mean that. We don’t win, I think this could be the last election we ever have. That’s where our country’s going."
The former president also addressed recent victims of what he labeled "Biden migrant crime" and pledged to prevent such incidents under his leadership.
The political implications of Trump's rhetoric were discussed by MSNBC’s Katy Tur with NBC News reporter Vaughn Hillyard, who highlighted Trump's strategy of using anecdotal stories to galvanize support.
Trump predicts the end of the country if he doesn't win.
Hillyard remarked, "This is a playbook that we have seen from Donald Trump before. The question is, will it work this go around? ... Donald Trump is using these anecdotal stories to try to motivate the base and support to rally around him."
He emphasized the historical prevalence of severe immigration rhetoric in American politics, despite data showing no increased risk of undocumented immigrants harming citizens compared to legal residents.
Hillyard also mentioned Trump's intent to exploit tragic stories for political advantage, citing the case of Laken Riley in Georgia.
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Donald Trump is the likely Republican nominee.
"Donald Trump is using these anecdotal stories to try to motivate the base and support to rally around him. I can even go back to a past job of mine," Hillyard told Tur. "Back in 2010, Steve King, the former congressman from Iowa, had made a claim that 9,000 Americans were killed annually by undocumented immigrants."
"This is something that Americans have heard, this sort of severe immigration rhetoric for a long time. But frankly, the data does not bear out the fact that undocumented immigrants kill Americans at any greater rate than, legal Americans, if you will," he continued. "But that is the difficult part here, and especially when you’re dealing with devastating, tragic stories like Laken Riley’s in Georgia, and Donald Trump has made it clear that he is going to try to politically use those tragedies for the political gain."
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Donald Trump currently faces 91 criminal charges.
The event sparked discussions about the effectiveness of Trump's messaging and the potential impact on the upcoming election.
Reflecting on Trump's history of using emotive narratives for political gain, experts are monitoring the reception of his recent remarks and their resonance with the electorate.
