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President-elect Donald Trump revealed that he feels safer going into the White House after he survived two attempts on his life this year.
During an interview on NBC News’ “Meet The Press,” Trump told host Kristen Welker that he feels safer with a “beefed up” protection detail after he narrowly survived two attacks.
“One of the things that made this campaign unprecedented and extraordinary was the horrific attempts against your life,” she said. “Two assassination attempts. Do you feel safe going into the White House for the next four years?”
Trump responded: “I have confidence in Secret Service. I know the people. I got to know a lot of them, and I have confidence. It was a bad moment. Something shouldn’t have happened. But I have a lot of confidence, and they really stepped it up.”
“They were restricted from giving the — look, I do a rally, and you were at many of them. And I’d have 50,000 people. Joe would have a rally and he’d have 30 people,” Trump continued. “And he had more Secret Service than me. My Secret Service was always asking for more manpower slash womanpower. They were asking for more and more and more, and they couldn’t get it.”
“I’m not blaming them really, because they were always fighting for more people,” he added. “And they wouldn’t get — now, boy, do we have it.”
WATCH:
Trump says that he feels “safe” heading into the White House after surviving assassination attempts earlier this year.
He said that the Secret Service wanted more assets to protect him but they were “restricted” by Biden. pic.twitter.com/rdhd7tLoA8
— Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) December 8, 2024
In his first network TV interview since his election victory, President-elect Donald Trump discussed a wide array of campaign promises, including his plans for immigration, health care, and the Justice Department, during an interview with NBC News.
Trump reiterated one of his key pledges, vowing to pardon individuals jailed for their involvement in the January 6 Capitol events on his first day in office.
“First day. Yeah, I’m looking for these pardons,” Trump told NBC’s Kristen Welker on Sunday’s “Meet the Press.”
Trump criticized jail conditions, which, according to several reports and eyewitness accounts including GOP lawmakers, are abysmal, and said those who pleaded guilty did so under duress.
“Look. I know the system. The system’s a very corrupt system. They say to a guy, ‘You’re going to go to jail for two years or for 30 years.’ And these guys are looking, their whole lives have been destroyed,” said Trump. “Yeah, I’m going to look at everything. We’re going to look at individual cases.”
According to the Department of Justice, over 1,500 people have been arrested or charged in connection with January 6, with nearly 900 pleading guilty.
Trump has promised to “free” those imprisoned for their actions that day a central theme of his campaign, frequently pledging to do so as one of his first acts as president and honoring them during his campaign rallies.
During the interview, Trump tore into FBI Director Christopher Wray while discussing national security expert Kash Patel, his new nominee to lead the agency.
Trump said that Patel is “going to do what he thinks is right” regarding his management of a law enforcement agency rife with scandal and losing trust among a growing majority of Americans. He also said that he supports Patel going after anyone who is a “crooked or a corrupt politician,” though he added that he doesn’t anticipate that Patel will simply target political opponents the way that the Biden-Harris Justice Department has done.
Welker asked, “Sir, are you going to fire the current FBI director, Christopher Wray, who you appointed?”
“Well, I can’t say I’m thrilled with him. He invaded my home. I’m suing the country over it. He invaded Mar-a-Lago. I’m very unhappy with the things he’s done. And crime is at an all-time high. Migrants are pouring into the country that are from prisons and from mental institutions, as we’ve discussed. I can’t say I’m thrilled. I don’t want to say — I don’t want to — again, I don’t want to be Joe Biden and give you an answer and then do the exact opposite — ” Trump began.
“We’re going to talk about that —” Welker interrupted to say.
“So I’m not going to do that. What I’m going to say is, I certainly cannot be happy with him. You take a look at what’s happened. And then when I was shot in the ear, he said, ‘Oh, maybe it was shrapnel.’ Where’s the shrapnel coming from? Is it coming from — is it coming from heaven? I don’t think so. So we need somebody to straighten — you know, I have a lot of respect for the FBI, but the FBI’s respect has gone way down over the last number of years,” Trump added.
Welker then asked, “Don’t you have to fire him to make room for Kash Patel if he is confirmed?”
“Well, I mean, it would sort of seem pretty obvious that if Kash gets in, he’s going to be taking somebody’s place, right? That somebody is the man that you’re talking about,” Trump said.
Texas Republican Sen. John Cornyn, a leading figure among the Senate GOP’s moderate lawmakers, says he is “confident” that Patel will secure confirmation for the post.
