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Trump’s ‘take out Los Angeles’ remark draws criticism in both parties

California Democrats and a Republican House candidate objected to the president’s Nebraska rally line; the White House said he meant U.S. cities would have been threatened by a nuclear-armed Iran.

Motion Media News Staff

Oct 7, 2026

3 minutes

President Trump speaks at a lectern bearing the presidential seal, with supporters holding MAGA signs behind him.

Photo: U.S. federal government (public domain), via Wikimedia Commons (source)

President Donald Trump's remark at a Nebraska rally that Iran could "take out" Los Angeles or San Diego drew criticism on Tuesday, Oct. 6, from California Democrats, a Republican House candidate and an independent who caucuses with Republicans, while the White House said his words were being misread.

Speaking Monday night, Oct. 5, in Grand Island, Neb., Trump said war-related prices were "a little bit high" and called them "a small price to pay for keeping the world safe, keeping our country safe," according to a transcript published by PolitiFact. He continued: "They can take out a city. Let them take, let it, let them take out Los Angeles. Let them take out San Diego." He then said "this is a very small price to pay" and that the war would end soon.

The White House response

White House Communications Director Steven Cheung said Tuesday on social media that Trump "was clearly stating U.S. cities would have been threatened if a nuclear Iran hadn't been stopped," and called the reaction a "media freakout" that "is not rooted in reality," The Hill reported. Cheung added, "America is safer because of the President," according to Al Jazeera. Rapid Response 47, an official White House account, also pushed back on how the Los Angeles Times headlined the remarks, PolitiFact said.

The Guardian reported that some conservative activists argued Trump was talking about high gas prices as the "small price to pay." It also noted that Trump has said in earlier speeches that a nuclear-armed Iran would threaten U.S. cities, and that U.S. defense officials have said Iran cannot currently launch a direct missile attack on the U.S. mainland.

California officials object

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, called Trump "deranged and dangerous" in a post on X. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass told CNN she was "horrified" by the comments, The Hill reported. San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria wrote on X, "We are not expendable," according to The Guardian.

Criticism also came from the Republican side. Jim Desmond, a Republican running in California's 48th Congressional District, wrote on X that he "vehemently" disagreed and that "no American city is expendable," Al Jazeera reported. Rep. Kevin Kiley, an independent from Northern California who caucuses with Republicans, called the remarks "unhelpful," the outlet said.

What's next

The comments came as Trump campaigns for Republican candidates ahead of the November midterm elections, when all 435 House seats and a third of the Senate are on the ballot, Al Jazeera noted. California has 52 House seats, the most of any state. The Guardian reported that Nebraska's Senate race has been unexpectedly close.