On Thursday [11 Aug 2016], Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump apologized for comments that have been widely construed as calling for the assassination of Hillary Clinton. \u201cI apologize,\u201d Mr. Trump said, clearly struggling with the second word as he addressed supporters at a campaign event in Philadelphia. \u201cI misspoke, okay? It happens. Get over it.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Tuesday, Mr. Trump had warned supporters, \u201cIf she gets to pick her judges\u2014nothing you can do, folks. Although, the Second Amendment people\u2014maybe there is, I don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Speaking on CNN later that day, campaign spokesperson Katrina Pierson insisted that Trump meant \u201cthat people that support their Second Amendment rights need to come together and get out and stop Hillary Clinton from winning in November.\u201d When it was pointed out that Trump was referring to what might happen after the election, Ms. Pierson explained, \u201cHe was saying what could happen. He doesn\u2019t want that to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Clinton campaign, many in the media, and even prominent Republicans rejected this interpretation. Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook said, \u201cThis is simple\u2014what Trump is saying is dangerous. A person seeking to be the president of the United States should not suggest violence in any way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clinton\u2019s running mate, Tim Kaine, told reporters after an event in Texas, \u201cNobody who is seeking a leadership position, especially the presidency, the leadership of the country, should do anything to countenance violence.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dan Rather, the former CBS news anchor, posted in Facebook that Trump \u201ccrossed a line with dangerous potential. By any objective analysis, this is a new low and unprecedented in the history of American presidential politics.\u201d<\/p>\n
Writing in the Washington Post,<\/em> Joe Scarborough, former Republican congressman and current host of the MSNBC show \u201cMorning Joe,\u201d called for \u201cevery Republican leader\u201d to denounce Trump\u2019s assassination suggestion and revoke their endorsement of the controversial candidate.<\/p>\n Regarding Trump\u2019s comment on the Second Amendment, Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) said, \u201cI don\u2019t believe this to be a serious statement.\u201d But Sessions added, \u201cYou absolutely shouldn\u2019t joke about it. It\u2019s contrary to what we believe in.\u201d<\/p>\n Former CIA director Michael Hayden chimed in, \u201cYou aren\u2019t just responsible for what you say; you\u2019re responsible for what people hear.\u201d<\/p>\n With his poll numbers plummeting, Trump was in full damage-control mode in Philadelphia. After apologizing for his misstatement, he went on to say, \u201cI\u2019m a truth-teller. All I do is tell the truth. But some people\u2014some people misinterpret me. On purpose, on accident, I don\u2019t know. I was not calling for the assassination of Hillary. Please. I\u2019m not a violent person. Never. Never violent. My friends can tell you. What I meant to call for was the assassination of terrorists or potential terrorists, okay? And there are lots of them, people, I\u2019m telling you, in Afghanistan and Iraq and wherever. Men, women, and children. Guns, not guns. Wedding parties. Doesn\u2019t matter. Drones would work fine, right?\u201d<\/p>\n The response was immediate and overwhelmingly positive. President Barack Obama said, \u201cContrary to my early statement, I now believe that Donald Trump is, indeed, fit to be president of the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n Fifty prominent Republican foreign policy and national security experts\u2014among them Hayden and other veterans of George W. Bush\u2019s administration\u2014signed a letter endorsing Trump\u2019s candidacy. \u201cDonald Trump is the answer to America\u2019s daunting challenges,\u201d the letter began, and went on to note that \u201cwithout a doubt, he possesses the single most important quality required of an individual who aspires to be President and Commander-in-Chief, with command of the U.S. nuclear arsenal.\u201d<\/p>\n Leon Panetta, Obama\u2019s former CIA director and Defense Secretary, told the Washington Post, \u201cAs I have said on numerous occasions, we need a leader who is strong and decisive, who has the respect of our generals and admirals, and the trust of our troops, especially our Special Forces, who maintain U.S. credibility around the world. I now am comfortable with either Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton winning the presidency.\u201d At the Democratic National Convention, in July, Panetta had condemned Trump because he \u201casks our troops to commit war crimes, endorses torture\u2026and praises dictators.\u201d<\/p>\n On his morning show, Scarborough appeared to be reconciling with the Trump campaign. He said, \u201cI\u2019ve been telling people for years that torture works. I know it works. You know it works. Donald Trump knows it works. This is going to make members of the mainstream media and Democratic Party uncomfortable, but you can make the argument, can\u2019t you, that shooting a member of al-Qaeda or ISIS, even a U.S. citizen, causes less pain than waterboarding.\u201d<\/p>\n Nancy Lindborg, president of the U.S. Institute of Peace, issued a statement that said, \u201cWhile we applaud Mr. Trump\u2019s support for measured counterterrorism, we contend that diplomacy, reconciliation, and no-fly zones are also necessary to achieve the U.S. goal of peace in the Middle East and remove Assad from power in Syria.\u201d<\/p>\n Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), who has received criticism for refusing to withdraw his endorsement of Trump, was heard joyfully singing his favorite campaign song, \u201cBomb, bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb Iran.\u201d<\/p>\n The Clinton campaign, though, remained skeptical of Trump\u2019s correction. Mook stated, \u201cTrump has zero foreign policy experience. Only one candidate in this race has the experience, knowledge, temperament, and judgment to call for assassination. Only one of the candidates was in the room when the decision was made to take out Osama bin Laden. Only one candidate has been privy to the president\u2019s kill list. And that\u2019s Hillary Clinton. The track record is there.\u201d<\/p>\n On his FiveThirtyEight blog, Pollster Nate Silver wrote, \u201cWe now anticipate seeing a bump in Trump\u2019s numbers, especially among college-educated voters.\u201d<\/p>\n ______________________________________<\/p>\n Timothy Braatz is a novelist, playwright, and professor of history and peace studies at Saddleback College in Mission Viejo, California. His publications include <\/em>Surviving Conquest: A History of the Yavapai Peoples; From Ghetto to Death Camp: A Memoir of Privilege and Luck; Grisham\u2019s Juror; and <\/em>Peace Lessons (forthcoming).<\/em><\/p>\n