Former President Donald Trump said that if he returns to the White House after the 2024 elections, looters “should expect to be shot.”
Trump spoke at the convention of the California Republican Party Friday, two days after skipping the Republican presidential debate at the Reagan Presidential Library. Rioters in Philadelphia looted multiple stores Tuesday and Wednesday night after a judge dismissed charges against a former police officer involved in a shooting.
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“I will use every everything I can, every single power at my disposal, including sending as many federal law enforcement assets as required to restore safe safety and peace,” Trump told the audience to applause. “And we will immediately stop, and some people will say oh, this is so terrible, I can’t believe. You know these people killing people when they go into there.”
“You have three hundred young people who are not looking for a good future, walk into a store, big department store and they’re just pillaging and if you happen to be there when they’re there, they will knock the hell out of you and kill you in some cases, and we will immediately stop all of the pillaging and theft,” Trump continued. “Very simply, if you rob a store, you can fully expect to be shot as you are leaving that store. Shot.”
The National Retail Federation and the Loss Prevention Research Council reported that stores lost over $119 billion to retail theft in 2022. Walmart closed four Chicago area stores in April, citing crime, while Target announced that it was closing stores in New York City, Seattle, Dan Francisco and Portland due to safety concerns.
Harold Hutchison on September 29, 2023
