Rep. Daniel Goldman apologized for his “poor choice of words” Monday after he said former President Donald Trump needs to be “eliminated.”
“Yesterday on TV, I mistakenly used the wrong word to express the importance for America that Donald Trump doesn’t become President again,” Mr. Goldman wrote on X. “While he must be defeated, I certainly wish no harm to him and do not condone political violence. I apologize for the poor choice of words.”
In a Sunday interview with Jen Psaki on MSNBC, the New York Democrat was discussing Mr. Trump’s rhetoric, saying it’s getting “more and more dangerous.”
“It is just unquestionable at this point that that man cannot see public office again. He is not only unfit, he is destructive to our democracy, and he has to be, he has to be eliminated,” he said.
Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung told The New York Post Monday that Mr. Goldman’s comment was not shocking.
“Democrats have been calling for violence against President Trump and his supporters since 2016. This is not new or surprising rhetoric,” he said.
The New York lawmaker received backlash from conservatives on social media for his comment.
“If a Republican went on TV and said that a Democrat presidential candidate needed to be ‘eliminated’ they’d be raided by the FBI within hours. Donald Trump facing half a millennia in prison for saying people should ‘fight,’” Turning Point USA and conservative activist Charlie Kirk wrote on X. “Instead, Dan Goldman alludes to the assassination of Donald Trump and does so with zero consequences and zero fear of any consequences.”
Alex Bruesewitz, a political consultant and supporter of Mr. Trump, posted on X that he hopes House Speaker Mike Johnson, Louisiana Republican, “censures this nut job!!!”
Mr. Trump is the lead candidate for the Republican Party, with some polls showing him leading over President Biden.
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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