Democrat Stacey Plaskett says Trump ‘needs to be shot’ in TV stumble over alleged mishandling of classified documents
Del. Stacey Plaskett (D-Virgin Islands) tripped over her tongue during a Sunday interview on MSNBC, saying former President Donald Trump “needs to be shot” over his alleged mishandling of classified documents before quickly correcting herself to say that he should be “stopped.”
“Having Trump not only have had the codes but now having the classified information for Americans and being able to put that out and share it in his resort with anyone and everyone who comes through should be terrifying to all Americans,” Plaskett told anchor Jonathan Capehart. “And he needs to be shot—stopped.”
The 57-year-old Plaskett, who is a non-voting member of the House of Representatives, also laughed off claims that a “two-tiered system” of justice led to Trump being indicted, with Republicans pointing out Hillary Clinton was not charged for retaining classified documents on a private email server while secretary of state.
“The two-tiered system is not to punish them more,” she said, claiming that GOP lawmakers were pushing “propaganda” to make Americans “distrust” federal law enforcement. “They want it to allow them to get away with more than everyday Americans … to make Americans believe that they, in fact, are above the law.”
Plaskett released a statement on Tuesday saying she did “not advocate for anyone to shoot former President Trump” and that she did “not encourage or condone political violence nor behavior that goes against democratic principles at any time.”
“I wish former President Trump no ill will or harm, only that justice be served in his case as with every other American who must face penalties for wrongdoing. I do believe and did intend to say that he must be ‘stopped,’” she said.
Trump was arraigned in Miami federal court last week on 37 counts of allegedly having kept the classified material and then lying to federal officials about it.
The former president stored the documents in a ballroom, bathroom, bedroom and basement storage room at his Mar-a-Lago resort, refusing to hand them over to the FBI or Department of Justice for more than a year, according to an 49-page indictment unsealed June 9.
The documents contained sensitive defense information, which Trump allegedly showed to people without the required security clearances.
Plaskett has raised her national profile in recent months as the ranking member of the House Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of Federal Government, at one point threatening independent journalist Matt Taibbi with a five-year prison sentence for having allegedly lied to Congress during a “Twitter Files” hearing.
She also served as an impeachment manager for Trump’s second impeachment, in which the Democratic-controlled House cited the 45th president for incitement of insurrection following the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot. The former president was ultimately acquitted by the Senate.
