Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned that Donald Trump needs to be taken more seriously ― and that the former president’s constant barrage of “outrageous” claims shouldn’t be dismissed.
“Part of what Trump is counting on is for people to get desensitised,” Clinton, who lost to Trump in 2016, told MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, adding:
“I mean, ‘Oh, my gosh, did you hear what he said yesterday? Did you hear who he attacked? Did you hear the viciousness?’ And it’s just, like with a shrug, ‘OK, fine we’re moving on.’ Well, Americans need to understand that they have to take Trump both seriously and literally. He has said what he wants to do. He and his allies with Project 2025, his desire to be a dictator, at least on day one, all of that is in the public record.”
Clinton, who has also been a U.S. senator and first lady, said voters should take Trump at his word and “be outraged” by what he says.
She urged the same U.S. media that was “merciless” with President Joe Biden before he withdrew from the 2024 race amid questions about his mental acuity to “have a consistent narrative about how dangerous Trump is.”
“I believe Donald Trump has disqualified himself over and over and over again to be a presidential candidate, let alone a president,” she said.
Clinton also sounded a more optimistic note, saying more voters are now “rejecting the kind of chaos that he represents,” including a growing number of Republicans who are publicly coming out against Trump and announcing their support for his rival, Vice President Kamala Harris.