Former United States President Donald Trump called House Speaker Nancy Pelosi “an animal” during a speech Monday in Ohio, to cheers from his supporters. On the eve of the midterm elections, Trump had gone to a rally near Dayton to support Republican Senate candidate JD Vance.
During his 90-minute speech, he mainly attacked the Democrats and particularly Mme Pelosi, just days after her husband, Paul Pelosi, was brutally assaulted at the couple’s California home.
Speaking of immigration and crime, Trump accused Democrats of allowing undocumented immigrants to enter the country and commit crimes. “These people are animals,” the former president said of those involved in a 2018 murder. He added that the Speaker of the House of Representatives objected to what he called human beings ‘” animals “.
“I think she’s an animal too, to tell you the truth,” he added, warmly applauded by the crowd. “They’ll be like, ‘Oh, what a horrible thing he said about Nancy.’ She impeached me twice for nothing! Nothing ! “, he justified himself.
The reactions were quick on social media.
Pelosi indulges in an interview
Trump’s comments came just minutes after Mr.me Pelosi spoke for the first time since the attack at his home. In an interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper, she appeared emotional as she reflected on the trauma of the attack on her husband.
On October 28, a man entered the home of Mr.me Pelosi in San Francisco and hit her husband with a hammer. The suspect, 42-year-old David DePape, said he was looking for the politician to take her hostage and break her kneecaps.
Prosecutors have since released details describing the suspect as someone driven to violence by pro-Trump extremist beliefs and who saw Pelosi as the head of a dangerous and corrupt political organization, Politico reports.
Mr Pelosi, 82, was hospitalized for several days with injuries to his right arm and hands and underwent surgery for a fractured skull. In an interview with CNN, Mr.me Pelosi said her husband is “doing well” but his recovery will be “long”. “He knows he has to take it easy. He’s such a gentleman that he doesn’t complain,” she said.
“For me, that’s really the hardest part, because Paul wasn’t the target,” the Democratic leader said. “It’s really sad, because it’s a flame that has been fueled by misinformation. […] This has no place in our democracy”.
Concerns on the web
Since Donald Trump’s statement on Monday, observers and critics have reacted strongly on social media:
“If anyone doubted that the constant death threats against Pelosi were instigated by the right: ‘Trump continues to target and dehumanize Nancy Pelosi, calling her an ‘animal’ at a rally on the eve of the election, even after an attacker motivated by Trump’s rhetoric struck her husband’s skull with a hammer.” »
” I have no words. Trump calls Nancy Pelosi “an animal,” and his supporters cheer him on. »
Trump is verbally violent again tonight against Nancy Pelosi: “what she did against us in this country
…he’s an animal.” LH Analysis: Very dangerous to do this after attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband.— LAURENCE HAIM (@lauhaim) November 8, 2022
Others pointed out that Donald Trump’s remarks came as Mr.me Pelosi was testifying for the first time since the attack at his home.
While this interview was airing, with Speaker Pelosi sharing her heartbreak after an intruder looking for her broke into her house and attacked her husband, prompting a national conversation about dehumanizing rhetoric, Donald Trump called her an “animal” to an Ohio rally. https://t.co/BXnZ65eYxx
—Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) November 8, 2022
“As this interview aired, with Speaker Pelosi sharing her grief after an intruder looking for her broke into her home and attacked her husband, sparking a national conversation about the dehumanizing rhetoric, Donald Trump called her a ‘animal’ at a rally in Ohio. »