Trump Again Reiterates That When He Says ‘Enemy From Within’ He Means Specific People

This is your TPM evening briefing.
ALLENTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA - OCTOBER 29: Republican presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally at The PPL Center on October 29, 2024 in Allentown, Pennsylvania. With one week until El... ALLENTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA - OCTOBER 29: Republican presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally at The PPL Center on October 29, 2024 in Allentown, Pennsylvania. With one week until Election Day, Trump is campaigning for re-election in the battleground state of Pennsylvania. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) MORE LESS
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

I’ve written a few times in recent weeks about the pretzels into which Donald Trump’s Republican allies are twisting his words as they try to defend and explain away his sinister remarks about deploying the military domestically to go after his “enemy.” The rhetoric has been a throughline of Trump’s campaign, as he and alumni of his first administration threaten to use the military as a goon squad to crack down on Americans if elected.

His Republican allies have defended the remarks in all sorts of creative and interesting ways, with many offering alternative ideas for who he might be talking about instead of his political rivals. Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin got imaginative recently when he suggested that Trump is actually talking about undocumented immigrants when he says “enemy from within.”

“What I want to just make very clear is that it’s my belief that what former President Trump is talking about are the people that are coming over the border, that in fact are committing crimes, that are bringing drugs, that are trafficking humans, and that are turning every state into a border state,” Youngkin said.

But in recent weeks Trump has doubled down on his remarks, and has made it clear repeatedly that he does, in fact, actually mean his political rivals: Democratic politicians. Specifically, Nancy Pelosi and Adam Schiff.

During his rally in Albuquerque, New Mexico this afternoon, he reiterated that he’s talking about Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), the person he blames for his impeachments. Today, he called him “total scum.”

“There’s no tougher job than being president and we get hit from the enemy inside, you know that right? We get hit by the Adam Schiffs of the world,” he said. “He’s scum, total scum. They made up Russia Russia Russia hoax, they made up all the impeachment hoaxes, they make it up. They’re bad people.”

Can’t be more explicit than that.

The Best Of TPM Today

Battleground State Election Officials Are Preemptively Shutting Down Rogue Clerks

Police Say Suspect Behind The Ballot Drop Box Fires May Be Planning More Attacks

Judge Extends Block On DeSantis Admin Anti-Abortion Pressure Campaign As State GOPers Turn On Gov

Yesterday’s Most Read Story

You Know What’s Really Garbage? Tired, Old Political Reporting Tropes

What We Are Reading

Dems see signs for optimism in gender gap in early vote

Jeff Bezos Doesn’t Understand That He Is the Problem

Jesse Watters Warns Wife That Secretly ‘Pulling The Lever’ For Kamala Harris Would Be Like ‘Having An Affair’: ‘D-Day!’ 

Latest Where Things Stand

Notable Replies

  1. If Trump wins, there’s a very good chance he will have his DoJ arrest Democratic politicians and throw them in jail based on nothing. Schiff and Pelosi might go first, but they won’t be the last. If he loses, Republicans and MAGA supporters will continue to go after the same people, threatening or committing violent acts. We’re going to be stuck with them for a while unfortunately, the awfulness with be Trump’s legacy.

  2. Every Accusation Is A Confession

  3. Geez, who is doing the makeup for Yam-tits?

  4. Uh, oh. TCF is failing in ABQ, NM today – He had to call a break in his rally, for medics to attend to a medical crisis. Here’s how he handled it – Let’s call for a dance party!

    Trump continued: “How about we play a song? God bless America.
    “Put it on and my people can move on.”

    What a F’in doofus. Unfit for President, Unfit even for a hooman being…

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

114 more replies

Participants

Avatar for daveminnj Avatar for mondfledermaus Avatar for eldonlazar Avatar for theod Avatar for mch Avatar for tecmage Avatar for stradivarius50t3 Avatar for fiftygigs Avatar for darrtown Avatar for southerndem Avatar for susanintheoc Avatar for tmulcaire Avatar for brian512 Avatar for dannydorko Avatar for davidn Avatar for seamus42 Avatar for 19tibekius6 Avatar for evave2 Avatar for bcgister Avatar for possum Avatar for dogselfie Avatar for Hatmama Avatar for old_guru Avatar for john_adams

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: