How many times have we seen this sort of bad faith misreading of something President Trump said? This sort of thing goes all the way back to the claim that Trump praised white nationalists at a Charlottesville protest. This is the "fine people on both sides" comment, which circulated in the media for years. Often the media would quote that comment without pointing out that Trump explicitly condemned racism, saying, "I’m not talking about the neo-Nazis and the white nationalists, because they should be condemned totally."
But if there's an opportunity to frame something Trump says in the worst possible way, many in the media will still leap forward to grab it. So yesterday Trump spoke at a rally in Nebraska and said the following about gas prices and the ongoing war with Iran.
I want to see a tremendous victory. You want to see a tremendous victory because it verifies all the things we did. And again, remember, with the war, it’s just artificial. It’s a little bit high. It’s a small price to pay for keeping the world safe, keeping our country safe.
They can take out a city. Let them take, let them take out Los Angeles; let them take out San Diego. That’s — this is a very small price to pay, and it’s going to be over with very soon. It’s essentially almost over with.
And they might keep going a little long. You know, they always say they have a big threshold for pain. They need it. Let me tell you, they need it. But it’s going to end very soon.
Admittedly, this is not a picture of rhetorical clarity, but Trump has been sending this message about higher gas prices being a small price to pay for defeating Iran for weeks now, and this is obviously just a variation on that theme. His point is the same one he's been saying for 20 years: Iran must not be allowed to have a nuclear weapon. His reference to them taking out LA or San Diego is meant to recall that threat.
But instead of making sense of it, many media outlets decided it would be more fun to simply frame it as an invitation, as if Trump is asking Iran (the country we're currently fighting) to blow up a major American city. It doesn't even make sense but of course that doesn't matter if there's a bad news cycle for Trump in the offing.
"They can take out a city. Let them take out Los Angeles..." President Donald Trump suggested letting Iran attack Los Angeles and San Diego while speaking at a midterm campaign event in Nebraska on Monday. California leaders were quick to respond to Trumps comments, with Governor Gavin Newsom saying, "Let’s be clear: The President is advocating for an attack on 10+ million U.S. residents in two of America’s largest cities. This is not normal." For more information, click the link below. https://t.co/2CrwfmFGr7
— ABC7 News (@abc7newsbayarea) October 6, 2026
This one got 19,000 likes, which was the point.
Trump on Iran: Let 'em take out Los Angeles and San Diego, it's a small price to pay https://t.co/Fc4BcjVDKj
— Headquarters (@HQNewsNow) October 6, 2026
And of course this goon was spreading it.
Trump: "With the war, it's just artificial. It's a little bit high. It's a small price to pay ... let them take out Los Angeles, let them take out San Diego. This is a very small price to pay." https://t.co/iIelj5sPUt
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 5, 2026
And this one:
A U.S. President says “let Iran take out Los Angeles and San Diego.” How much farther will he fall? https://t.co/FuUcROfghe
— Ed Krassenstein (@EdKrassen) October 6, 2026
CBS News, to its credit, framed it accurately.
President Trump defended the war with Iran during a campaign rally in Nebraska, calling its economic impact a “small price to pay” for keeping the U.S. and the world safe. “They can take out a city. Let them take out Los Angeles. Let them take out San Diego,” Trump said while discussing the threat he says Iran poses to the U.S. He also called the war “artificial” and said he expects it to end “very soon.” Trump was in Nebraska campaigning for Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts ahead of the November midterms.
— CBS News (@CBSNews) October 6, 2026
CBS Mornings not so much.
At a rally in Nebraska, President Trump appeared to suggest Iran should “take out” Los Angeles and San Diego, while telling voters that high prices are “artificial” during the U.S.’ war with Iran: “It’s a small price to pay for keeping the world safe, keeping our country safe.” The president’s comments came as he campaigns in typically red states ahead of the midterms, trying to shore up his base amid sagging poll numbers. In Kansas, another red state that voted for President Trump three times, Democrats believe they have a chance to elect Reverend Adam Hamilton, who is taking on Republican Senator Roger Marshall.
— CBS Mornings (@CBSMornings) October 6, 2026
Many outlets just ran with the headline that was more fun and more profitable.
President Trump suggests that Iran "take out" Los Angeles and San Diego... 🎥: Fox news https://t.co/deOLwgDX2S
— TMZ (@TMZ) October 6, 2026
The LA Times:
Trump suggests letting Iran 'take out' Los Angeles and San Diego at campaign rally https://t.co/2pkkOAR8MR
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) October 6, 2026
George Stephanopolous for Good Morning America:
I know the clip of ABC’s ‘Good Morning America’ is going around with their lies about Trump and his LA/San Diego comments, but it’s worth spelling out the transcript to see how blatant it was. Co-host George Stephanopoulos leaned into his true calling as a longtime Democratic Party official: “Also on Iran, the President is sparking a fierce backlash after suggesting a campaign rally that Iran could take out Los Angeles or San Diego, American cities run by Democrats.” Virulent Trump hater and senior political correspondent Rachel Scott front-loaded her story with over a minute on Trump’s comments, declaring Trump was aiming to spend Monday “defending the war in Iran, but it’s those comments he made about the regime taking out two American cities that is prompting swift and fierce backlash this morning.” “This morning, President Trump, facing growing criticism after suggesting Iran could “take out” Los Angeles or San Diego, two American cities run by Democrats,” she added.
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) October 6, 2026
Ana Navarro on The View:
.@AnaNavarro reacts after President Trump held a rally in Nebraska Monday night where he defended his deeply unpopular war in Iran and suggested Iran could "take out" Los Angeles and San Diego. https://t.co/v97RBiXmfv
— The View (@TheView) October 6, 2026
And it wasn't just left-leaning news outlets. Elected Democrats couldn't resist. Nancy Pelosi got in on the action.
The words of an American President weigh a ton. He must not be frivolous with the weight of his office. Donald Trump has gone beyond the pale saying Iran can “take out” Los Angeles and San Diego. How could he say the slaughter of Americans is a "small price to pay"? The American people expect much more of a U.S. President.
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) October 6, 2026
And of course Gavin Newsom:
Disgusting and disqualifying.
— Governor Gavin Newsom (@CAgovernor) October 6, 2026
He also talked about it on his podcast.
An American president is talking about Los Angeles and San Diego being “taken out.” Where the hell is Congress? This is dangerous. The time to stand up is NOW. https://t.co/1PVG6PHb7m
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) October 6, 2026
Here's the DNC:
Trump's new message on his Iran war: "Let them take out Los Angeles. Let them take out San Diego." Disgusting and dangerous. End the war and hold him accountable.
— Democrats (@TheDemocrats) October 6, 2026
And Gov. Kathy Hochul.
.@GovKathyHochul (D-NY) on President Trump's recent comment suggesting Iran could "take out" U.S. cities like Los Angeles and San Diego: "I think this is just a continued deterioration of what he stands for... This could be a new low, except everyday there's a new low." https://t.co/HpAL4MfUcb
— CSPAN (@cspan) October 6, 2026
Anyway, you get the idea. Everyone in the media and on the left had a freakout about these comments while only a handful of people pointed out what Trump was actually saying, which was the opposite of what many of the headlines were suggesting.
The people complaining about this are deliberately distorting it. He wasn’t inviting Iran to attack LA or San Diego. He was warning that it could, if it had a nuclear weapon, and therefore higher gas prices were a small price to pay. It’s absurd to interpret this any other way.
— Joel Pollak (@joelpollak) October 6, 2026
Why is this level of outright dishonesty happening? Well, Democrats are doing it for partisan advantage in the midterms. The media is doing it because they are nearly all Democrats, so circle back to the first point. The media is always pretty bad at this, framing stories in the worst possible light if possible. But they're especially bad one month before a big election. This is the season when the media lets its real colors show. After the election, once it doesn't matter, maybe a few of these outlets will apologize and go back to pretending they are neutral arbiters instead of partisan hacks.
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