Donald Trump’s 25th Amendment remarks at a campaign rally in Grand Island, Neb., set off immediate criticism after he suggested Iran could “take out” Los Angeles and San Diego. Gavin Newsom and Todd Gloria responded on X, while the White House defended the comments as a warning about cities threatened if a nuclear Iran had not been stopped.
Trump said, “They can take out a city, let ’em take out Los Angeles, let ’em take out San Diego.” Newsom’s press office said the remarks put more than 10 million U.S. residents in focus, and Gloria wrote that San Diego is not collateral damage.
Grand Island rally remarks
Trump spoke on Monday and tied the line to Iran, saying, “It’s a small price to pay for keeping the world safe, keeping our country safe,” before adding that he wanted to “see a tremendous victory.” He also said, “’cause it verifies all the things we did. And again, remember, with the war it’s just artificial, it’s a little bit high.”
The setting mattered because he made the remarks in public at a campaign rally rather than in a formal policy statement. The comments put Los Angeles and San Diego at the center of a campaign appearance that quickly moved from rally language to a national security dispute.
Newsom and Gloria respond
Newsom posted that Trump was saying foreign enemies should “take out” Los Angeles and San Diego. He later wrote, “After sending the National Guard and Marines to occupy California, Donald Trump is now saying our foreign enemies should ‘take out’ Los Angeles and San Diego.... He is deranged and dangerous.”
From his press office account, Newsom added: “Let’s be clear: The President is advocating for an attack on 10+ million U.S. residents in two of America’s largest cities. This is not normal. None of this is. And we will continue to remind folks of that every day.” Gloria wrote, “San Diego is not collateral damage,” followed by, “We are not expendable,” “And we are never a ‘small price to pay.’”
White House response on X
White House communications director Steven Cheung said on X, “The media freakout over President Trump’s comments is not rooted in reality.” He added, “He was clearly stating U.S. cities would have been threatened if a nuclear Iran hadn’t been stopped.” Cheung also wrote, “America is safer because of the President.”
He said, “Iran has no nuclear, no navy, no air force, and no money,” drawing the dispute toward the administration’s argument that Trump was describing a threat scenario, not urging an attack. The comment left a split explanation on record: California leaders heard a call to let foreign enemies strike two cities, while the White House framed it as a warning about danger averted.
March warnings in California
The remarks also arrived against earlier warnings in March, when law enforcement agencies across California were told the Iran war could lead to a surprise drone attack in the Golden State. The Times said sources told it there was no credible intelligence behind that warning.
Trump has long had a strained relationship with Los Angeles, and he went to San Diego in 2019 to tout his border wall. For now, the public record leaves one question unresolved: what intelligence, if any, prompted his choice of words about Los Angeles and San Diego.
