Biden’s incendiary rhetoric comes back to haunt him
Biden told donors on a private call this afternoon:
“It’s time to put Trump in the bullseye.”
— Kenneth P. Vogel (@kenvogel) July 8, 2024
But as Politico columnist, Jack Shafer suggested:
Isn't that a little … incendiary?
— Jack Shafer (@jackshafer) July 8, 2024
The Biden campaign, however, seemed to think that in the aftermath of the debate, it would be in their candidate’s interests to highlight his fighting words.
The Biden-Harris campaign is on a post-debate blitz, meanwhile, in an apparent effort to quell the distress.
A memo the campaign sent to Hill offices obtained by Scripps News highlights President Biden’s energetic campaign rallies, swing state polling and grassroots support.
The president joined a call with the Biden Victory Fund National Finance Committee, where the campaign says he told supporters, “It’s time to put Trump in the bullseye,” framing his strategy for the next debate as “Attack. Attack. Attack. Attack.”
“I mean, I know that he didn’t mean what is being implied there,” [Speaker Mike] Johnson said Sunday about Biden’s comments, but added, “That kind of language on either side should be called out.”
“We can have vigorous debate, but it needs to end there,” Johnson said.
Republicans like senior Trump campaign adviser Chris LaCivita and members of the House Judiciary Committee have pointed to Biden’s comments over the last 24 hours as adding fuel to the fire ahead of Saturday’s shooting.
On Sunday, Biden spoke from Delaware and condemned all political violence, saying, ““It’s sick. It’s sick. It’s one of the reasons we have to unite this country … We cannot condone this.”
And commenting directly on the allegations that Biden incited violence against Trump, an aide to the president told NBC News, that the president has often spoken, “condemning political violence and saying it can never happen, before and during the presidency.”