Former President Trump has made thinly veiled threats against two of his most prominent political opponents in California in recent days on the campaign trail, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Representative Adam B. Schiff. He is an enemy of California, suggesting that he is California’s most powerful political opponent. If he wins the White House, we will have to deal with him by force.

In an interview with Fox News on Sunday, President Trump suggested he might call in the U.S. military after the presidential election, calling “radical-left lunatics” like Schiff “the enemy from within.” Asked about those remarks at a town hall in Georgia on Tuesday, Trump doubled down, calling Democrats like Pelosi “evil” and more dangerous than China and Russia.

Trump’s comments were downplayed by his fellow Republicans, but quickly drew condemnation from Democrats, including his opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, and Schiff. The Burbank congressman led multiple investigations into Trump in the House of Representatives and is currently running for a vacant U.S. Senate seat in California.

“When a would-be despot reveals his true identity.” Schiff tweeted“You should believe him.”

Schiff’s response was consistent with previous reactions he and Pelosi have given regarding Trump’s threats. In recent interviews with the Times, both California Democrats said that, among other things, recent Supreme Court decisions provide sitting presidents with unprecedented immunity from criminal prosecution for their actions in their official capacities. He said he takes President Trump’s attacks seriously, considering his admission.

They also said his threats against them were further evidence that he should never hold office again and evidence that he would pose a broader threat to anyone who stood in his way. He said he accepts that there is.

Pelosi, who still represents the San Francisco congressional district, said she was concerned that if Trump were to win, “not only would we be targeted, but many others would be targeted.”

“And just thinking about it, I can see why he shouldn’t be elected. How unpopular is it to say that I’m going to be a target when I become president?” [my political rivals] He retaliated as a dictator on day one and was given impunity by a corrupt court,” Pelosi said. “It’s embarrassing for everyone around me.”

Pelosi said her concerns that she and Schiff would be subject to extrajudicial attacks if Trump were to become president again are because “we agree to do so because we know he’s crazy.” “This is a personal fear that we must confront.”

He said Americans should be afraid of Trump, saying, “His policies are antithetical to the needs of the people, he only cares about himself, and he gives tax breaks to America’s richest corporations.” He said that not only is the United States undermining the security of the United States by colluding with dictators and autocrats. alienate allies.

“I don’t think he even knew what NATO was before he ran for office,” Pelosi said.

Trump’s anger toward Democrats in general, and Pelosi and Schiff in particular, has grown in large part because they were the targets of investigations during and after his presidency. In addition to being impeached twice, Trump has been charged with a series of crimes in state and federal courts. He was convicted of 34 felonies in New York for paying hush money to a porn star with whom he was accused of having an affair, and is currently facing election interference charges in federal court and Georgia.

President Trump has dismissed each investigation as a “witch hunt” or a “hoax” orchestrated by Democrats to remove him from power.

Although President Trump has reluctantly acknowledged former House Speaker Pelosi’s abilities as a Democratic tactician, he has particularly criticized her as a “crazy” liberal who has ruined California in the past. He also mocked an act of violence against her husband, Paul, by an intruder in their San Francisco home in 2022.

Schiff said Trump’s attacks on his political opponents are textbook authoritarianism and offer clues as to what kind of president he will be if he wins a second term, especially in light of the Supreme Court ruling. said.

Schiff said Trump’s authoritarian tendencies make it more important than ever that if he wins, Congress continues to fulfill its constitutional duty to oversee and rein in the president’s worst impulses and misdeeds. He said it would happen. That’s part of the reason he’s been campaigning for and funding other Democrats running for Congress, he said.

“With Democrats in the majority, it is absolutely imperative that we continue to vigorously monitor and, if necessary, hold him accountable again, because the Supreme Court has determined that he is not bound by criminal law,” Schiff said. This is because they have decided that they are free from bondage.” “He can be any criminal he wants as president and is effectively untouchable. So the role of Congress as an essential guardrail will only become more important.”

Schiff said a Trump victory would undoubtedly “increase personal risk” for him and others who criticize Trump, but they are not backing down.

Mr. Schiff cooperated with the investigation into ties between the Trump campaign and Russia during the early days of Trump’s presidency, and led the impeachment of Mr. Trump for seeking political favors while withholding military aid from Ukraine, and on January 6, 2021. He also cooperated with President Trump’s investigation into his incitement of the riot at the U.S. Capitol. His supporters intended to block the certification of President Biden’s election, which led to Trump being impeached for the second time.

Because of his accomplishments, President Trump called Schiff a “traitor” who should be removed from public office and severely punished. He also accused Pelosi of treason.