White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt pointed the finger directly at Democratic lawmakers when talking about hateful rhetoric leading to political violence like the shooting incident at Saturday’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

Fox News’ Aishah Hasnie asked Leavitt about the rhetoric of late-night host Jimmy Kimmel who quipped days before the incident about the first lady “having the glow of an expectant widow.”

“There does seem to be a normalization of rhetoric about assassinating this particular president,” Hasnie said. “How can this administration try to put an end to this?”

“I think you heard it directly from the president on Saturday night. That, in his words, we need to recommit ourselves as a country to tone down the rhetoric and to unifying around what makes our country great,” Leavitt said. “That’s true of everyone who works in this White House. But as I said, it’s also true of everyone who has a voice and a platform across this country.”

Leavitt said it’s not just the media, “it is the entire Democrat Party has made their pitch to voters across the country that Donald Trump poses an existential threat to democracy, that he is a fascist, and that they compare him to Hitler. I mean, these are despicable statements that the American people have been consuming for years, and so many mentally perturbed individuals are led to believe these words are truths and then are inspired to act on it.”

Leavitt then began reading “a whole host of examples” from Democratic lawmakers:

LEAVITT: Rep. Hakeem Jeffries this month said, “We are in an era of maximum warfare everywhere, all the time. Gov. Josh Shapiro said, “Heads need to roll within the administration.” Sen. Alex Padilla said people are quote, “Dying because of fear and terror caused by the Trump administration.” Sen. Elizabeth Warren, “President Trump is making the country look like a” quote, “fascist state.” Sen. Adam Schiff saying President Trump using a “dictator playbook.” Sen. Ed Markey, calling President Trump “a dictator,” saying that this administration’s actions are “authoritarianism on steroids.” Gov. J.B. Pritzker, “Never before in my life have I called for mass protest disruptions. These Republicans cannot know a moment of peace.” You have Rep. [Ayanna] Pressley saying, “We’ll see you in the streets. Rep. LaMonica McIver, a Democrat representative on Capitol Hill, “We will not take this shit from Donald Trump. He thinks he’s a dictator. We are at war.”

“These are Democrat elected officials calling for war against the president of the United States and his supporters!” Leavitt exclaimed.

“I could go on and on to, but again, when you have people in positions of power that are saying things like this every single day for years, you are inspiring violence by people who are already mentally ill. And that’s what we’ve seen against this president for far too long,” she said.

Watch the clip above via Fox News.

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!