WASHINGTON ― House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) on Monday praised President Donald Trump for posting a video of himself bombing “No Kings” protesters with poop and claimed the protesters were trying to “incite violence.”
“The president uses social media to make the point. You can argue he’s probably the most effective person who’s ever used social media for that,” Johnson said at a press conference.
In response to millions of Americans turning out for “No Kings” rallies in hundreds of cities across the country, the president on Saturday posted a fake video of himself flying a fighter jet labeled “KING TRUMP” and dumping liquid excrement on the protesters.
“He is using satire to make a point. He is not calling for the murder of his political opponents, and that’s what these people are doing,” Johnson said.
Johnson and other top Republicans have called “No Kings” a “Hate America” rally and said Democrats in Congress had shut down the government in order to score points with the protesters.
Johnson said last week the protesters would include terrorist sympathizers, Marxists and antifa types. Other Republicans suggested the protests would be violent. They weren’t, but Johnson displayed photos of “No Kings” protesters with signs that said “86 47,” which he claimed was an incitement to violence against Trump, since he’s the 47th president and “86” means reject, discard or cancel. Another protester’s sign showed a man labeled “DJT” hanging from a noose.
“They’re trying to incite violence. It’s not funny. You don’t mock a president who has already had two failed assassination attempts on his life,” Johnson said Monday. “They had the right to do it. Congratulations. They didn’t burn any buildings down. That’s a big achievement for the left, to have some kind of gathering where they don’t have looting and riots and burn a building down.”
Though Republicans have cast the left as the party of violence and looting, it was supporters of President Donald Trump who formed a mob, fought police and ransacked the Capitol over Trump’s 2020 election loss. Trump pardoned the rioters at the start of his second term in January, an act of clemency for political violence supported by Johnson and every other Republican in Congress.