Trump Claims Terrorists Are ‘Hoping And Praying’ Clinton Gets Elected

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign stop at Old National Events Plaza, Thursday, April 28, 2016, in Evansville, Ind. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

Donald Trump claimed in a statement Monday afternoon that terrorist groups are “hoping and praying” Hillary Clinton is elected president, turning a criticism she often lobs his way on its head.

“The Obama-Clinton doctrine of not taking ISIS seriously enough has emboldened terrorists all over the world,” the statement attributed to Trump reads. “They are hoping and praying that Hillary Clinton becomes President so that they can continue their savagery and murder.”

In the third of a flurry of statements addressing the weekend’s apparent terror attacks that his campaign blasted out to reporters on Monday, Trump also accused Clinton of being willing to “say anything – and blame anyone – to shift attention away” from her record as secretary of state.

In yet another, earlier statement, Trump spokesman Jason Miller accused Clinton of trying to “distract from her horrible record on ISIS” by accusing Trump of treason. She did not use that word during a press conference earlier in the day, but did describe Trump as “giving aid and comfort to our adversaries.” Clinton also cited former CIA director Michael Hayden’s comments calling Trump a “recruiting sergeant” for terrorist groups, a criticism the Trump campaign mirrored in its flurry of responses.

Earlier Monday, the GOP nominee also deleted a tweet posted late Sunday that scorned President Barack Obama’s and Clinton’s “failed” security policies in the wake of the attacks.

Read the full statement below:

“In the past 48 hours, our law enforcement showed again that, without them, our country is neither safe nor secure. I am grateful for the quick action of law enforcement in capturing the terrorist responsible for Saturday’s bombings, and the off-duty police officer for stopping the terrorist in Minnesota. This weekend’s attacks, from Minnesota to Manhattan, are just the latest to be carried out on U.S. soil under President Obama. These should be a wake-up call for every American.

Today, Hillary Clinton showed again that she will say anything – and blame anyone – to shift attention away from the weakness she showed as Secretary of State. The Obama-Clinton doctrine of not taking ISIS seriously enough has emboldened terrorists all over the world. They are hoping and praying that Hillary Clinton becomes President so that they can continue their savagery and murder.

While our President has referred to them as the “J.V. Team” and Hillary Clinton calls them our “determined enemies,” I have been willing to call them exactly what they are: radical Islamist terrorists.

I will bring an end to these senseless acts of violence. They are wrong to say that we’re in a fight about ‘narratives.’ These terrorists pose an existential threat to our country, our values, and our way of life.

When I am President, terrorists like today’s suspect in the New York and New Jersey bombings, Ahmad Khan Rahami, and yesterday’s knife-wielding ISIS sympathizer in Minnesota, Dahir Adan, will be stopped. We will not look the other way. We will not allow political correctness and soft-on-terror, soft-on-crime policies to threaten our security and our lives.

Revelations that the Obama Administration wrongly granted citizenship to over 800 immigrants awaiting deportation from countries of concern to national security or high rates of immigration fraud puts this weekend’s attacks in a broader perspective. The safety and security of the homeland must be the overriding objective of our leaders when it comes to our immigration policy.

That’s why I’ve proposed extreme vetting for immigrants from troubled parts of the world where terrorists live and train, and oppose Hillary Clinton’s 550% increase in the number of refugees from the conflict in Syria. These are tough problems that require tough leadership. We need to get smart and get tough fast so that this weekend’s attacks do not become the new normal here as it has in Europe and other parts of the world.” – Donald J. Trump

Latest Livewire

Notable Replies

  1. No, Donald, right-wing terrorists of both the Mid-East Theocratic and Euro-American White Nationalist varieties are hoping and praying for YOU to be President.

  2. You betcha…they ‘know’ how ineffective this ‘doctrine’ has been while the Republican doctrine allowed them to grow, steal money and equipment and partner up with Russia.

  3. Avatar for cmj cmj says:

    The “I know you are but what am I” candidate strikes again.

  4. This is the exact opposite of what is happening out here in the “Realty-Based World.”

  5. Our president salutes the wisdom and courage of The Donald.

    WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—Calling this “the greatest day of my life,” a visibly moved Barack Obama held a news conference on Friday to thank Donald Trump for granting him U.S. citizenship.

    “The issue of whether or not I was a U.S. citizen has been a dark cloud over my existence for as long as I can remember,” a tearful Obama told the press corps. “Only one man had the courage, wisdom, and doggedness to make that cloud go away: Donald J. Trump.”

    The President, who had to halt several times during his remarks to compose himself, praised the Republican Presidential nominee for “never giving up” in his quest to prove that Obama was born in the U.S.

    “A weaker man would have said, ‘I don’t need this in my life,’ but Donald Trump was always there for me,” the President said. “Over the past five years, barely a day went by when he didn’t call me and say, ‘Barack, I don’t care what a bunch of crackpots say. You were born here, and I’m going to prove it once and for all.’ “

    The President said he planned to spend the day celebrating his U.S. citizenship with his family. “It’s great to be an American, at last,” he said.

    When asked if he had any message for Trump, the President paused for a moment. “Just this: I love you,” he said, a tear trickling down his cheek.

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

81 more replies

Participants

Avatar for paulw Avatar for littlegirlblue Avatar for brooklynmichael Avatar for sysprog Avatar for old_curmudgeon Avatar for leftflank Avatar for epicurus Avatar for adabsurdum Avatar for turdburgler Avatar for carlosfiance Avatar for inversion Avatar for mantan Avatar for lastroth Avatar for magical_panda Avatar for pippenpippen Avatar for dickweed Avatar for benthere Avatar for emilianoelmexicano Avatar for tena Avatar for meta Avatar for bckrd1 Avatar for michaelm Avatar for maximus Avatar for sheila_borden

Continue Discussion
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Deputy Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: