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U.S. President Donald Trump sparked immediate backlash after suggesting during a campaign rally that Iran could “take out” Los Angeles and San Diego. Trump made the remarks Monday night at a rally in Nebraska, where he defended high gas prices as a temporary consequence of his ongoing military conflict with Iran.
After repeating his familiar argument that rising fuel costs are a short-term burden worth bearing, Trump went further. He floated the idea that Tehran could strike two of America’s largest cities. “They could take out a city,” he told the crowd. “Let ’em take out Los Angeles. Let ’em take out San Diego.”
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The crowd laughed and cheered as Trump continued. “This is a very small price to pay, and it’s going to be over with very soon,” he added.
Newsom Fires Back at Trump
California Governor Gavin Newsom responded sharply on social media platform X. Newsom, a Democrat widely expected to pursue the presidency in 2028, called Trump “deranged and dangerous.”
“After sending the National Guard and Marines to occupy California, Donald Trump is now saying our foreign enemies should ‘take out’ Los Angeles and San Diego,” Newsom wrote. “He is deranged and dangerous.”
Trump’s suggestion drew criticism beyond Newsom. The remarks alarmed many observers because they appeared to invite a foreign adversary to attack American soil. However, Trump’s supporters at the Nebraska rally responded with laughter and applause.
A Pattern of Targeting Democratic Cities
Trump has a well-documented history of disparaging large American cities, particularly those that lean heavily Democratic. Los Angeles was one of several cities where Trump deployed federal military personnel, including National Guard troops and Marines. He framed those deployments as a crackdown on crime, despite strong objections from local authorities.
More recently, at a campaign rally in North Carolina, Trump described that state’s cities as “blood-soaked killing fields.” In reality, North Carolina’s violent crime rate ranks in the middle third of all U.S. states, according to FBI statistics.
Trump’s Nebraska comments about Los Angeles and San Diego represent a sharp escalation in his rhetoric. Both cities are among the most populous in the United States. Furthermore, both sit in California, a state Trump has repeatedly targeted with federal action and harsh public criticism.
As of Monday night, no formal response had come from federal national security officials regarding the president’s remarks.
