Nicolai Haugsted
Trump’s small price to pay remark triggers fierce backlash from both sides of the political aisle.
The political fallout from Donald Trump’s latest comments about the Iran war has now reached beyond his usual opponents.
California Democrats reacted furiously after the president named Los Angeles and San Diego while discussing the sacrifices Americans could face during the conflict. More notably, criticism also came from politicians on the Republican side, including candidates fighting competitive races in California.
The White House insists the controversy is based on a misunderstanding.
According to the administration, Trump was not suggesting that sacrificing two American cities would be acceptable. His communications director said the president was instead arguing that cities such as Los Angeles and San Diego could have faced danger had Iran been allowed to acquire nuclear weapons.
Trump’s actual wording has ensured that explanation is facing scrutiny.
Trump goes from higher prices to Los Angeles
Trump was speaking Monday at a political rally in Grand Island, Nebraska, where he discussed the financial consequences of the Iran conflict.
Fuel, fertilizer and other products have become more expensive amid disruption to global energy markets, but Trump argued that Americans were paying a relatively modest price for greater security.
“Remember, with the war, it’s just artificial, it’s a little bit high, it’s a small price to pay,” Trump told supporters.
“It’s a small price to pay for keeping the world safe, for keeping our country safe.”
His next sentence immediately shifted the discussion toward something far more dramatic.
“They could take out a city. Let ’em take out Los Angeles, let ’em take out San Diego. This is a very small price to pay, and it’s going to be over with very soon.”
Trump subsequently predicted that the conflict was approaching its conclusion.
“It’s essentially almost over with,” he said. “But it’s going to end very soon, and it’s going to end one way or the other.”
White House says critics have it wrong
Questions about exactly what Trump meant followed quickly.
White House Communications Director Steven Cheung offered the administration’s interpretation Tuesday, rejecting suggestions that Trump had treated the destruction of American cities as an acceptable consequence of the war.
“The media freakout over President Trump’s comments is not rooted in reality,” Cheung wrote on social media.
“He was clearly stating US cities would have been threatened if a nuclear Iran hadn’t been stopped.”
Cheung then pointed to what the administration considers the results of Trump’s Iran policy.
“America is safer because of the President. Iran has no nuclear, no navy, no air force, and no money.”
Trump himself had not publicly provided that clarification in the material supplied for this article.
Karen Bass points back to Trump’s own words
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass was not persuaded by the White House explanation.
Speaking on MS Now on Tuesday, Bass pushed back against Cheung’s suggestion that the media had misunderstood Trump.
“Well, I’m not sure that he understands that we can hear what the president said,” Bass responded according to Reuters.
She added that Cheung’s explanation “has no connection to the words that came out of the president’s mouth.”
Bass also warned separately that Trump’s remarks “could potentially compromise our safety.”
Los Angeles and San Diego are California’s two most populous cities, making their inclusion in the president’s remarks particularly notable.
Republicans join the criticism
Political opposition did not come exclusively from Democrats.
Jim Desmond, a Republican running in a competitive congressional race near San Diego, publicly rejected Trump’s comments while supporting a tough approach toward Iran.
“I vehemently disagree with President Trump’s comments,” Desmond wrote on X.
“America must stand up to Iran and defend our interests, but the first responsibility of our Commander in Chief is to protect the American people and our homeland.”
Desmond then made his position explicit.
“No American city is expendable, and no American family should ever be treated as collateral damage.”
US Representative Kevin Kiley, an independent who caucuses with Republicans and faces his own competitive reelection campaign in northern California, called Trump’s comment “unhelpful.”
Such criticism carries additional political weight because early voting for California’s November midterm elections began Monday.
Newsom delivers a much harsher response
California Governor Gavin Newsom went considerably further.
“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,” Newsom wrote on X.
Newsom called Trump “deranged and dangerous.”
His remarks referenced the president’s previous deployment of federal forces to California, another issue that has fueled repeated confrontations between Sacramento and Washington.
Newsom has positioned himself as one of Trump’s most prominent Democratic adversaries, while California has simultaneously become an important midterm battleground following the redrawing of congressional districts.
San Diego is also a major military hub
Trump’s reference to San Diego carries another dimension beyond its civilian population.
More than 115,000 active-duty military personnel are stationed in the area, according to the source material. Naval Base San Diego is the largest naval installation on the US West Coast.
Democratic Rep. Sara Jacobs highlighted that military presence while responding to Trump.
“My constituents — including many active duty service members, veterans, and their families — are not acceptable collateral damage in Trump’s stupid war,” Jacobs wrote on social media.
