CNN anchor Jim Acosta argued Monday night there is a “very strong chance” former President Donald Trump will incite “more political violence” than the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Appearing on “The Situation Room” with Wolf Blitzer, Mr. Acosta slammed Mr. Trump‘s speech over the weekend at the North Carolina Republican Party convention, in which the former president claimed the 2020 presidential election “was by far the most corrupt election in the history of our country” and will “go down as the crime of the century.”
“At one point during this event on Saturday night, [Mr. Trump] referred to the 2020 election as the crime of the century,” Mr. Acosta said, Mediaite reported. “It would have been the crime of the century had he been successful in overturning the election results. And so, you know, at every turn, he is just pulling the wool over the eyes of the folks on the stage there with him in North Carolina and in the audience. And as long as Donald Trump stays on the road, Trumpism stays alive. And it’s dangerous for the country.
“And, Wolf, I think there’s a very strong chance that we may see more political violence in this country stoked and incited by this president,” he later continued. “He‘s done it before. It looks like he may do it again.”
Mr. Blitzer chimed in, saying that from the looks of it, Mr. Trump‘s speech was “only just beginning” of his reemergence since his reelection defeat to President Biden.
“It is going to continue to go on,” Mr. Acosta agreed. “And I will tell you, I talked to a former Trump adviser about this earlier today who said one of the reasons why Trump is able to do this and get out on the road and spread these lies and hostility and hatred is because there have been no consequences for him, Wolf. Why have there been no consequences for Donald Trump, you know, calling the state of Georgia and trying to get 11,000 votes out of the state of Georgia? Why has he been able to get away with strong-arming his own vice president and inciting an insurrection up on Capitol Hill that resulted in the deaths of a handful of good Americans?
“As long as he remains out on the road and remains in a position where he can spread these big lies, I think there’s the potential for more political violence in this country,” he said. “And it just goes against I should note, Wolf, everything that this country stands for. We pride ourselves on not having this kind of political violence in this country. As long as Trump remains on the stage, it remains a strong possibility.”
