US President Joe Biden has dismissed any notion that his words might have incited violence, claiming that by calling for a “bullseye” on Donald Trump he was merely trying to shift the “focus” from his poor debate performance to his Republican rival’s actions and policies.
The incumbent has repeatedly called his rival a threat to democracy and the nation, and told donors earlier this month, “We’re done talking about the debate; it’s time to put Trump in a bullseye.” Following the attempted assassination of Donald Trump, multiple commentators argued that the violence was incited by exactly this kind of reckless remark.
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In an interview on Monday, Biden insisted it was a “mistake” and merely a figure of speech when NBC News anchor Lester Holt asked him about the term “bullseye.”
“I didn’t say ‘crosshairs.’ I meant ‘bullseye,’” Biden clarified. “I meant focus on him. Focus on what he’s doing, focus on his policies, focus on the number of lies he told in the debate. Focus on… I mean there is a whole range of things that… Look, I am not the guy that said I want to be a dictator on day one. I am not the guy that refused to accept the outcome of the election.”
Asked whether the shooting prompted him to do “some soul searching” and reflect on comments “that could incite people who are not balanced,” the incumbent deflected, arguing that it was Trump, not him, who has routinely used incendiary rhetoric for years.
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”How do you talk about the threat to democracy, which is real, when a president says things like he says? Do you just not say something because it may incite somebody?” Biden said, recalling Trump’s pledge to become a “dictator” for just one day and his warning about a potential “bloodbath” if he loses. “I have not engaged in that rhetoric… My opponent has engaged in that rhetoric.”
On Saturday, a gunman later identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks fired several shots at Trump while he was giving a speech on an open-air stage in Butler, Pennsy lvania. A bullet grazed the former president’s right ear, but he was otherwise unharmed. One spectator was killed, and two more were wounded before the attacker was fatally shot by Secret Service agents.
Although the attack was widely condemned by both Republicans and Democrats, Trump supporters have argued that the Democrats and the media were guilty of inciting hatred against Trump.