Democrats have expressed outrage after Donald Trump told a group of Christian supporters on Friday that if he wins the presidency in November, they would never need to vote again.
“Christians, get out and vote, just this time,” the former president and current presidential nominee told the crowd at at Turning Point Action’s Believers’ Summit on Friday. “You won’t have to do it any more. Four more years, you know what? It’ll be fixed, it’ll be fine, you won’t have to vote any more, my beautiful Christians.”
“You got to get out and vote,” Trump continued. “In four years, you don’t have to vote again. We’ll have it fixed so good you’re not going to have to vote.”
A spokesperson for Trump’s campaign told the Washington Post that Trump “was talking about uniting this country and bringing prosperity to every American, as opposed to the divisive political environment that has sowed so much division and even resulted in an assassination attempt”.
But Trump’s comments spread quickly across media, causing outrage and alarm among many Democrats and others, who called the remarks “terrifying”, authoritarian and anti-democratic.
Trump tells supporters they won’t have to vote again if he wins November US election – video
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Trump tells supporters they won’t have to vote again if he wins November US election – video
The Kamala Harris 2024 campaign said in a statement responding to Trump’s remarks, that the upcoming election was about freedom, adding that democracy was “under assault” by Trump.
“After the last election Trump lost, he sent a mob to overturn the results,” the statement reads. “This campaign, he has promised violence if he loses, the end of our elections if he wins, and the termination of the constitution to empower him to be a dictator to enact his dangerous Project 2025 agenda on America.”
The representative Adam Schiff echoed that democracy was on the ballot in November, adding that “if we are to save it, we must vote against authoritarianism.”
Trump’s remark, he said, “helpfully reminds us that the alternative is never having the chance to vote again”.
The congressman Daniel Goldman, who represents New York, also chimed in, stating: “the only way ‘you won’t have to vote anymore’ is if Donald Trump becomes a dictator”, and the representative Pramila Jayapal called the remarks “terrifying” on social media.
The constitutional and civil rights attorney Andrew Seidel replied to video of Trump’s comments on Friday by writing: “This is not subtle Christian nationalism. He’s talking about ending our democracy and installing a Christian nation.”
Caty Payette, the communications director for the Democratic US senator Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, added in a separate X post: “When we say Trump is a threat to democracy, this is exactly what we’re talking about.”
Jaime Harrison, the chair of the Democratic National Committee, pointed to past comments Trump has made, where he said he would be a dictator on “day one” if he wins the presidency.
“Except for day one,” Trump responded, adding: “I wanna close the border and I wanna drill drill drill.”
Last month, the former president made similar suggestions in front of a different Christian audience, according to the Washington Post.
“You gotta get out and vote, just this time,” Trump said at that time. “In four years you don’t have to vote, ok? In four years don’t vote, I don’t care. But we’ll have it all straightened out, so it’ll be much different.”
Trump has also flirted with the idea of being president for three terms.
“You know, FDR 16 years – almost 16 years – he was four terms. I don’t know, are we going to be considered three-term? Or two-term?” Trump said in May to the annual convention of National Rifle Association in Dallas, prompting some in the crowd to yell “three!” Politico reported.
The Guardian