Donald Trump on Monday brought up hacked emails purporting to show that the interim head of the Democratic National Committee shared a question with Hillary Clinton’s campaign ahead of a Democratic primary debate, saying he would get “the electric chair” if he were in the same situation.
“She should be fired from the DNC,” Trump said of Donna Brazile at a rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan. “Could you imagine if I did that? What would happen if I did that? Electric chair, I think. The electric chair. If I did that, could you imagine?”
A Monday WikiLeaks release of emails from Clinton campaign chair John Podesta allegedly showed Brazile tipping the team off to a question from a Flint, Michigan resident who developed a rash as the result of lead poisoning in the city’s water supply. This person was reportedly going to ask the candidates how they would help her family. Though no person fitting that description asked a question at the debate, a woman did ask about the lead poisoning her family suffered.
A CNN spokesperson said in a statement that Brazile, a contributor to the network until she took over as interim chair of the DNC, did not receive access to questions ahead of time. But the spokesperson said the network accepted Brazile’s resignation in mid-October.
Trump, who has previously said he would he would get “the electric chair” for using the f-word, said that Brazile “just got fired from the network.”
Retired Indiana University basketball coach Bobby Knight returned to the stage at that point in the rally, less than half an hour after he introduced Trump.
There will be “no bullshit in a Donald Trump administration,” Knight assured attendees.
Trump later circled back to his point about the debate questions, saying Clinton should have alerted authorities if she had received any ahead of time.
“She accepted those questions to the debate,” he said. “She had the questions to the debate. Forget about Donna. I don’t care about Donna. Why didn’t Hillary Clinton report that she was given essentially unethically probably illegally; why didn’t she report that she had the questions?”
In an emailed statement, the Clinton campaign reiterated that U.S. intelligence have said that the leaked WikiLeaks emails were likely obtained from Russian hackers.
“Director Comey needs to clearly tell the American people whether he is investigating any Trump associates for potential coordination with the Russians on the weaponizing of this cyberattack,” Clinton spokesman Glen Caplin said.
