Here is what Donald Trump said at a rally on February 1 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa (via
Mediaite):
"if you see somebody getting ready to throw a tomato, knock the crap out of 'em, would you? Seriously. Okay? Just knock the hell — I promise you, I will pay for the legal fees. I promise. I promise."
Here is what Trump said at a rally on March 4 in Warren, Michigan, the day after the Kentucky protesters were assaulted (via
the Associated Press):
During one interruption, Trump said, "Get him out. Try not to hurt him. If you do I’ll defend you in court."
"Are Trump rallies the most fun?" he then asked the crowd. "We’re having a good time."
He then recalled an incident at a New Hampshire rally where a protester started "swinging and punching." Trump said some people in the audience "took him out."
"It was really amazing to watch," he said.
Here is what Donald Trump said at the March 9 Fayetteville rally at which McGraw assaulted Jones (via
the Atlantic):
"See, in the good old days this didn’t use to happen, because they used to treat them very rough. We’ve become very weak."
Here is what Donald Trump said at a
St. Louis rally on Friday at which police removed one protester with a bloodied face (though the circumstances of his injury are still unclear):
"Part of the problem and part of the reason it takes so long [to kick them out] is nobody wants to hurt each other anymore."
Statements like these add up to a consistent message:
Gee, it would be great if someone taught these protesters a lesson.
What is most disturbing, though, is how much Trump legitimizes — even embraces — acts of violence that have already occurred, connecting them to the good, "beautiful" feelings supporters have
This isn't limited to violence against protesters. When asked in August about a hate crime in which
two Trump supporters beat a homeless man with a metal rod, Trump said, "People who are following me are very passionate. They love this country and they want this country to be great again."
Trump certainly uses the police presence at his rallies to his advantage. On multiple occasions, the Trump campaign has directed law enforcement agents to remove people who look like they might be protesters — which, unsurprisingly,
tends to be people of color.
When protests do erupt, Trump uses the fact that police are taking the protester away as evidence that the protester must have been violent. And on Saturday, he
promised to "start pressing charges against all these people" — threatening to "ruin the rest of their lives."
http://www.vox.com/2016/3/14/11219256/trump-violent