Donald Trump and his campaign are responding to accusations that the candidate encouraged "Second Amendment people" to commit violence against Hillary Clinton during a rally Tuesday. The Trump campaign says the notion that Trump was suggesting violence is "ridiculous" and that he was referring to voting instead.
On this politics day edition of River to River, Ben Kieffer sits down with political analysts, Rachel Caufield of Drake University, and Justin Holmes of the University of Northern Iowa. They discuss the reactions and repercussions of Trump’s latest comment, as well as the impact of a letter from 50 senior GOP national security officials warning that Trump would "risk our country’s national security and well-being.” The signatories of the letter all worked in Republican administrations, with many serving as top aides to President George W. Bush.
“Trump lacks the character, values, and experience to be President,” they wrote. “He weakens U.S. moral authority as the leader of the free world. He appears to lack basic knowledge about and belief in the U.S. Constitution, U.S. laws, and U.S. institutions, including religious tolerance, freedom of the press, and an independent judiciary.”
The letter signers include Michael Hayden, the former director of the CIA and the National Security Agency, two former secretaries of homeland security, and John Negroponte, who served as director of national intelligence and deputy secretary of state.
