President Trump’s rhetoric is “partially” to blame ratcheting up political tensions in the U.S., Rep. Mark Sanford, R-S.C., said Thursday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” connecting the commander in chief to Wednesday’s shooting at a GOP baseball practice in Northern Virginia.
“The president is at least partially — again, not any way totally, but partially — to blame for demons that have been unleashed,” Sanford said, noting that although Trump was not responsible for the shooting, his coarse rhetoric and encouragement of violence have fostered aggression and a lack of civility in the heated political climate.
“If you let these forces play out, I think we end up at a very, very bad spot,” Sanford said. “What happened yesterday was symptomatic of it.”
At Wednesday’s shooting, a gunman fired on members of Congress practicing for a baseball game, injuring five, including House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., the No. 3 House Republican, who remains in critical condition. The gunman, James T. Hodgkinson, died from his injuries after a shootout with police.
GOP Rep. Sanford on Va. shooting: Trump partially responsible ‘for the demons that have been unleashed’
“The president is at least partially — again, not any way totally, but partially — to blame for demons that have been unleashed,” Sanford said, noting that although Trump was not responsible for the shooting, his coarse rhetoric and encouragement of violence have fostered aggression and a lack of civility in the heated political climate.
“If you let these forces play out, I think we end up at a very, very bad spot,” Sanford said. “What happened yesterday was symptomatic of it.”
At Wednesday’s shooting, a gunman fired on members of Congress practicing for a baseball game, injuring five, including House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., the No. 3 House Republican, who remains in critical condition. The gunman, James T. Hodgkinson, died from his injuries after a shootout with police.
GOP Rep. Sanford on Va. shooting: Trump partially responsible ‘for the demons that have been unleashed’
