Former President of the United States, Donald Trump, did not rule out the possibility of political violence by his party if he is not elected in the November elections.
“I don’t think we’ll have that,” said the Republican party pre-candidate to Time magazine. “I think we will win. And if we don’t win, you know, it depends. It always depends on the impartiality of the elections.”
The statements were made in an extensive interview with Time magazine that was published on Tuesday (30). The conversation also addressed abortion issues and the controversial leadership of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, among other topics.
See four points about the interview:
Trump’s election conspiracies
Speaking to Time at his residence in Mar-a-Lago, Florida, Trump diminished the importance of possible acts of political violence similar to that of the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol.
“I think we will have a great victory. And I believe there will be no violence,” said Trump, who, after his defeat in 2020, rallied his supporters in Washington before the attack, and at first refused to ask them to leave the US Capitol.
But pressed by the magazine in a later phone interview, Trump was less categorical about the future.
“I don’t believe they’re capable of doing the things they did last time,” Trump said.
Throughout his political career, Trump has refused to accept the results of an election or commit to acknowledging his defeat.
After coming in second in the Iowa Caucus in 2016, Trump accused Texas Sen. Ted Cruz of fraud and called for a new run.
Later, when Trump competed against Democrat Hillary Clinton, the Republican baselessly claimed that the election he won was “rigged” and repeatedly refused to say whether he would accept the result.
This year, Florida Governor Ron Desantis said during the Republican primaries that Trump would not accept the results of the Iowa caucuses if he lost.
In his interview, Trump also redoubled his promise to pardon the hundreds of people convicted of crimes committed on January 6th.
Trump described these people as “hostages”, although many have pleaded guilty to violent crimes or have been convicted by the courts.
Time asked, “Would you consider pardoning each of them?”
Trump responded: “I would consider it.”
Team: “And would you really do that?”
Trump: “Yes, absolutely.”
Statements about abortion
Trump’s statements to Time magazine about abortion show limitations – and potential political dangers – of his desire to leave the future of access to the procedure in the hands of state governments.
He declined to say whether he would veto a federal abortion ban, insisting that such a measure was unlikely to go forward. In previous statements, the Republican has said he would not sign a federal abortion ban if he were elected.
When asked by Time magazine if he felt “comfortable” with the abortion decision being in the hands of the state, Trump had no objections.
“I have no reason to feel comfortable or uncomfortable,” Trump said. “The states will make this decision. The states will have to feel comfortable or uncomfortable, not me”, he adds.
As a candidate in 2016, Trump said “there should be some kind of punishment” for women who undergo an illegal abortion, a stance his campaign withdrew almost immediately.
United States President Joe Biden’s campaign took the opportunity to criticize Trump’s most recent statements.
“Donald Trump’s latest comments leave no doubt: if elected, he will sign a national abortion ban, allow women who have abortions to be persecuted and punished, allow the government to invade women’s privacy to control their pregnancies, and endanger in vitro fertilization and contraceptive methods across the country,” said Biden campaign director Julie Chavez Rodriguez.
Trump also leaned on the states when asked whether governments should monitor pregnancies to see if a woman has the procedure.
“I think they can do it,” Trump said. “Again, you’re going to have to talk to each of the states.”
Trump criticizes Netanyahu again
After the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, Trump attacked Netanyahu and blamed the Israeli prime minister for security failures that did not prevent the action.
Amid protests against the war in Gaza that took over the United States, Trump again intensified his criticism of the prime minister.
Trump told Time that Netanyahu “was rightly criticized for what happened on October 7” and said the Hamas attack “took place under his watch.”
Instead, Trump is still offended that Netanyahu allegedly “abandoned” the US-backed military operation that led to the death of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani.
Trump also said that a future two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians “will be very, very difficult.”
“Four years ago there were a lot of people who liked the idea,” Trump said. “Today, there are a lot fewer people who like this idea.”
Timid calls for the release of Wall Street Journal journalist
It took insistence, but Trump said for the first time that Wall Street Journal journalist Evan Gershkovich “should be released” after a year in prison in Russia.
When asked why the former president hadn’t called for Gershkovich’s release sooner, Trump responded: “I think because I have a lot of other things I’m working on.”
Gershkovich is an American journalist who was detained in Russia after being accused of espionage that, according to the newspaper and American authorities, is unfounded.
Earlier this year, Trump remained silent for days after the death of Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny in a Russian prison, even as other world leaders quickly condemned the Kremlin.
When Trump finally spoke out publicly, he did not condemn Russia or President Vladimir Putin, and suggested that he was being politically persecuted in the same way as Navalny. Trump later described Navalny as “very brave” and said it was a “very sad situation.”
When journalist Jamal Khashoggi was murdered in 2018, Trump refused to condemn Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, despite the CIA concluding that the ruler authorized the brutal murder.
Trump said he was “extremely angry and very unhappy” about Khashoggi’s murder, but said “no one directly pointed the finger” at the crown prince. In addition to the CIA’s conclusion, a United Nations (UN) report also later implicated bin Salman.
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