In response to JD Vance defending Donald Trump’s threats to attack American citizens, which he called the “enemy from within,” DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd released the following statement: 

“JD Vance is showing us exactly the kind of danger the Trump-Vance ticket poses to our democracy by doubling down on Donald Trump’s appalling comments attacking Americans as the ‘enemy from within’ and saying that they are a ‘bigger threat’ than any ‘foreign adversary.’ Those who know Trump best have already told us that he’ll put our democracy at risk if given the chance – and the only way to stop him is at the ballot box this November.” 

NEW: JD Vance said he does “agree with” Donald Trump’s “enemy from within” comments, attacking American citizens as a bigger threat than any “foreign adversary.”

Kristen Welker, NBC: “Donald Trump recently called his domestic political opponents, quote, ‘the enemy from within,’ and said they are more dangerous than Russia and China. Do you believe that people like Adam Schiff and Nancy Pelosi are more dangerous than Russia and China?”

Vance: “Well, I think what Donald Trump said is that those folks pose a greater threat to the United States’ peace and security, because America is strong enough to stand up to any foreign adversary.”

Welker: “Do you agree with him, they pose a larger threat to the United States than Russia and China”

Vance: “What he said, and I do agree with this, what he said, is that the biggest threat we have in our country, it’s not a foreign adversary, because we can handle these guys.”

REMINDER: Trump threatened to weaponize the National Guard and military against American citizens to destroy the “enemy from within,” which Vance defended as “totally reasonable.”

Trump: “I think the bigger problem is the enemy from within … totally destroying our country. … In terms of Election Day, I think the bigger problem are the people from within. We have some very bad people. We have some sick people, radical left lunatics. And I think they’re the big – and it should be very easily handled by, if necessary, by [the] National Guard, or if really necessary, by the military, because they can’t let that happen.” 

Howard Kurtz, Fox News: “I want to drill down on this question of retribution against your political opponents, because you’ve had opportunities to walk that back. And my question is this: are you prepared to say now that you will not use law enforcement to punish or prosecute your political opponents?”

Trump: “Excuse me, that’s what they’re using on me.”

Kurtz: “You talk about the enemy within. There’s America’s enemies outside, ‘the enemy within’ is a pretty ominous phrase if you’re talking about other Americans.”

Trump: “I think it’s accurate. I mean, I think it’s accurate.”

Kurtz: “Who are you talking about because the enemy –”

Trump: “But what they’ve done is so terrible. Who’s ever heard of anything like this? Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff. He’s a crooked guy. He’s a crooked politician. One hundred percent he’s going to be a senator now, can you believe it?”

Kurtz: “But again, he’s a political opponent of yours, is he the enemy?”

Trump: “No, he’s a well, he’s, of course, he’s an enemy. He’s an enemy. … These are bad people. We have a lot of bad people, but when you look at ‘Shifty’ Schiff and some of the others, yeah, they are, to me, the enemy from within. I think Nancy Pelosi is an enemy from within.”

Bill Hemmer, Fox News: “I’ve read all of it, I’ve listened to all of it, it’s hard for me to know what he really means about it. But, that’s not my question. My question is, why is it necessary?”

JD Vance: “Well, Bill, first of all, Donald Trump is unfiltered … When people ask him questions, he speaks from the heart.” …

Hemmer: “In this case – he mentioned Adam Schiff and Nancy Pelosi by name, in this case over the weekend.” […]

Vance: “I think it’s totally reasonable for the president to point out that yes, we’ve got the strongest country in the world, but we do have some broken leaders in Washington.”

Just this week, new recordings revealed Trump’s former chief of staff calling him a “fascist” and saying that Trump wanted “the kind of generals Hitler had.”

The Atlantic: “As his presidency drew to a close, and in the years since, he has become more and more interested in the advantages of dictatorship, and the absolute control over the military that he believes it would deliver. ‘I need the kind of generals that Hitler had,’ Trump said in a private conversation in the White House, according to two people who heard him say this. ‘People who were totally loyal to him, that follow orders.’”

New York Times: “[Gen. Kelly] said that, in his opinion, Mr. Trump met the definition of a fascist, would govern like a dictator if allowed, and had no understanding of the Constitution or the concept of rule of law. …

“Mr. Trump’s recent comments about using the military against what he called the ‘enemy within’ were so dangerous, he said, that he felt he had to speak out.

“‘And I think this issue of using the military on — to go after — American citizens is one of those things I think is a very, very bad thing — even to say it for political purposes to get elected — I think it’s a very, very bad thing, let alone actually doing it,’ Mr. Kelly said.”

When asked about Trump’s praise for Hitler’s generals, Vance said to “shut the hell up about what happened four years ago.” 

Dave Kinchen, Fox 2: “My question is I wanted to get your reaction to President Trump’s former chief of staff, John Kelly, who told The New York Times that Trump could rule like a dictator and meets the definition of a fascist. Just want to get your reaction, sir.”

Vance: “Yeah. Look, you could just, look you could just record the boos of the crowd and that’s my response to that question. … Talk about the future, Kamala Harris, talk about what you want to do, and shut the hell up about what happened four years ago.”

Trump, who is vowing to be a dictator on “day one,” told voters they “won’t have to vote anymore” if he’s elected president. 

The Atlantic: “Trump Says He’ll Be a Dictator on ‘Day One’”

Trump: “You won’t have to do it anymore. Four more years, you know what – it will be fixed, it will be fine. You won’t have to vote anymore.”