The White House responded to Democrats and media reports after a viral clip showed Donald Trump seemingly telling Iran to destroy major cities like Los Angeles and San Diego, []
The U.S. White House issued a response on Tuesday, 6 Oct 2026 GMT+7, after Democratic Party members accused President Donald Trump of urging Iran to "destroy" major U.S. cities such as Los Angeles and San Diego.
This issue arose after Trump spoke at a midterm election rally in Nebraska on Monday, stating that higher oil prices due to the Iran war were a reasonable cost to prevent Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons.
"The price is a bit higher, but it's a small price to pay to keep the world and our country safe," Trump said. "They could destroy a city—let them. Let them bomb Los Angeles, let them bomb San Diego. This is a very small price to pay, and this will end soon."
The video of these remarks went viral online, prompting Democrats, who govern California—the state home to Los Angeles and San Diego—to accuse the 80-year-old Republican president of inciting foreign enemies to attack both major cities.
"Donald Trump is now telling our foreign enemies to ‘destroy’ Los Angeles and San Diego. He is insane and extremely dangerous," California Governor Gavin Newsom posted on X.
"Nuclear destruction of American cities is not a matter to joke about," said Hakeem Jeffries, House Democratic Minority Leader, on X.
However, the White House insisted Trump was addressing the threat posed by Iran, describing the reaction as "media panic" that "is not based on reality."
"He is clearly saying that U.S. cities will be at risk if we do not stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons," White House Communications Director Steven Chung posted on X.
Additionally, the White House Rapid Response account on X disputed a Los Angeles Times report claiming Trump urged to "let Iran ‘destroy’ Los Angeles and San Diego."
"No, he didn’t say that, you fools. What he meant is that the U.S. is fighting to ‘deter’ Iran from gaining the capability to destroy Los Angeles and San Diego with nuclear weapons, which they would likely do if given the chance."
Trump is campaigning in the final month before the midterm elections amid Republican concerns that voter dissatisfaction over the Iran war and rising prices could cause the party to lose control of Congress.
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Source:cna