Story summary
During a campaign rally in Nebraska, former President Donald Trump suggested letting Iran "take out" Los Angeles and San Diego, drawing significant criticism from California officials. At the event, Trump stated it would be a "small price to pay for keeping the world safe," despite attendees' approval. In response, Gavin Newsom, California's governor, called Trump “deranged and dangerous,” emphasizing that protecting American lives is the president’s responsibility.
Mayors of both cities also condemned the remarks. Karen Bass, mayor of Los Angeles, tweeted that a president should protect the country instead of encouraging attacks on U.S. citizens. Meanwhile, Todd Gloria of San Diego wrote that his city was not "collateral damage" and is home to major military installations such as Naval Base San Diego and Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton.
The comments reflect ongoing tensions between Trump and California leaders; Newsom previously clashed with the former president over troop deployments in the state. This incident highlights concerns about national security rhetoric and its impact on public safety, especially regarding Iran's nuclear capabilities and potential threats to U.S. cities.
Written for “Trump Iran Comment Controversy” on 2026-10-06,
grounded in this article and the 16 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it -0.50, but 1 quote(s) could not be found in the article and the other 2 are attributed speech rather than the article's own narration, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph
rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 61195: no verified evidence · logged 2026-10-06
This buffoon thinks Trump was way out of line
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Click here to listen to this article -
- Maybe a gratuitous and unfunny line about anyone taking out American cities is better left unsaid.
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asserted
anyone → think → cities
White House Communications Director Steven Cheung claimed Trump was misrepresented.
asserted
Trump → claim → ?
I went to bed at a decent hour Monday night and got a pretty good sleep.
asserted
I → go → sleep
I woke up refreshed Tuesday morning, only to see the news that President Trump seemed to have told a crowd in Nebraska that it wouldn’t be such a bad thing if Iran attacked Southern California.
“Let ‘em take out Los Angeles.
asserted
em → wake → Angeles
Let ‘em take out San Diego,” he said in a typically meandering speech, perhaps trying to justify a war he has repeatedly claimed is keeping the U.S. safe, even as gas prices have spiked.
asserted
prices → let → U.S.
“This is a very small price to pay.”
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This → pay → ?
The Nebraska crowd cheered.
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crowd → cheer → ?
“San Diego is not collateral damage,” said San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria.
asserted
Gloria → say → ?
Such “dangerous” remarks could “potentially compromise our safety,” said L.A. Mayor Karen Bass.
uncertain
Bass → compromise → safety
“He is deranged and dangerous,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom.
asserted
Newsom → derange → ?
About 8 a.m., I took my dog Philly out for our morning walk.
asserted
I → take → walk
I clear my head.
asserted
I → clear → head
I got to thinking about the similarities in the daily routines of Philly and the president of the United States.
asserted
I → get → States
The thing is, I carry bags with me and clean up after Philly.
asserted
I → carry → Philly
The president to my knowledge has nobody on his staff doing this.
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president → have → this
We are at a point in American politics at which we must consider posting signs, everywhere Trump travels, that say, “Please Curb Your President.”
asserted
that → consider → President
Not that it would be easy to clean Trump’s daily messes.
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it → clean → messes
You’d need the equivalent of those parade attendants in overalls who run along behind the horses with shovels.
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who → need → shovels
The White House does not use poop bags.
asserted
House → use → bags
Instead, it uses denial and spin.
asserted
it → use → denial
Trump made the remarks during a rambling speech in which he said gas prices would be lower soon, touted his ouster of Venezuela’s dictator, and made attacks on news outlets.
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prices → make → outlets
Critical reactions to Trump’s Nebraska comments were “not rooted in reality,” said White House Director of Communications Steven Cheung, who claimed Trump was misrepresented.
asserted
Trump → root → Communications
We’ve got to respect Cheung’s opinion.
asserted
We → get → opinion
Does anyone in the world have more experience when it comes to analyzing comments not rooted in reality?
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it → have → reality
Some of you may know there are two topics I often revisit in my column.
uncertain
I → know → column
So I feel eminently qualified to psychoanalyze the president.
asserted
I → feel → president
I don’t mean to generalize, but as people age, it’s not unusual for them to undergo behavioral changes.
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them → mean → changes
Some folks mellow, they abide, they lean into the ride.
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they → mellow → ride
Others can become churlish, combative or grouchy.
asserted
Others → become → ?
Not only is Trump the poster boy for the latter group, but as things go wrong, he becomes more obstinate.
asserted
he → go → group
And things have definitely gone wrong.
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things → go → ?
The president is personally responsible for rising gas prices.
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president → rise → prices
He’s ruined the economy with his tariffs.
asserted
He → ruin → tariffs
He’s picked a fight with Canada.
asserted
He → pick → Canada
He may cost his party the House and the Senate because his almost daily outrages have pumped oxygen back into the blood of long-slumping Democrats.
uncertain
outrages → cost → Democrats
A normal person would have the good sense to scale back or shrink away.
Trump keeps doubling down, wants to put his name on everything, and lashes out the way someone does when it’s not clear what’s bigger — their ego or their insecurity.
asserted
what → have → everything
I enjoy corn, on or off the cob.
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I → enjoy → cob
But thank you very much, Nebraska, for Fred Astaire, Johnny Carson and Henry Fonda, who, by the way, was born in Grand Island, where Trump made his cracks Monday about California.
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Trump → thank → California
Did it occur to any of the shuckers who cheered Trump’s throwaway line about an attack on San Diego and L.A. that:
A: It wasn’t funny.
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It → occur → Diego
B: San Diego has one of the nation’s largest military installations, with thousands of personnel currently deployed to the Middle East because of the war in Iran.
asserted
Diego → have → Iran
…and 10 more, not listed.
The Aporia
