If it was a joke, nobody laughed very loudly.
Donald Trump appeared on Tuesday to suggest that if Hillary Clinton was elected president, the only way to stop her choosing Supreme Court justices would be to shoot her.
“Hillary wants to abolish, essentially abolish the Second Amendment,” he said, referring to the piece of legislation that gun rights activists claim gives them the right to bear weapons.
.@realDonaldTrump: '2nd Amendment' may be only way to block @HillaryClinton's judicial picks https://t.co/9iItl1L3MP https://t.co/r7WtzIe9th
— POLITICO (@politico) August 9, 2016
“By the way, and if she gets to pick - if she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do, folks. Although the Second Amendment people, maybe there is, I don’t know.”
Donald Trump just suggested that people could shoot Hillary Clinton to stop her picking Supreme Court judges as president. IT'S OVER NOW.
— Keithó (@KeithMacGP) August 9, 2016
Mr Trump’s comment came during a rally in Wilmington, Delaware and was immediately seized on by commentators as the latest example of the New York tycoon’s offhand language.
Clinton campaign spokesman responds to Trump's Second Amendment-Supreme Court comments involving Clinton. pic.twitter.com/rxVTEqWK0m
— NBC Nightly News (@NBCNightlyNews) August 9, 2016
Two weeks he sparked huge controversy when he called on Russia to hack into Ms Clinton’s emails. The following day, amid outcry from people across the political spectrum, Mr Trump said he was simply joking.
On, Tuesday after, Ms Clinton's responded to Mr Trump's comments, saying it was proof of his unsuitability for the office. "This is simple - what Trump said was dangerous. A person seeking to the president of the US sbojuld not be suggesting violence in any way."
- More about:
- US election 2016
- Donald Trump
- Second Amendment