The mayor of New York City says Donald Trump’s prediction that he could shoot someone and not lose support in the polls is “incredibly sensitive,” and shows he’s not ready to be president.
“We had a moment in our nation’s history we’re talking about how to deal with the scourge of gun violence,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said on ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday. “And for someone who says he wants to be president to say that, it shows he’s just not presidential.”
“And it’s incredibly arrogant, too, for him to suggest that his voters will be with him no matter what he does,” de Blasio added. “You know, this is another indicator that Donald Trump is not ready for primetime.”
At a rally in Iowa on Saturday, Trump told a crowd, “I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose any voters, OK?” The comment was a reference to the loyalty of his supporter base and the several months of polls that show the businessman at or near the top of the Republican field.
When asked about the chances of his predecessor, former mayor Michael Bloomberg, running for president, de Blasio said America needs to find someone other than a billionaire to be president.
“One, my candidate is Hillary Clinton, and I really believe she will be the next president of the United States,” he said.
“And the second thing is, I don’t think the people of this country want to give more power to billionaires at this point,” de Blasio continued. “I think that’s what this election increasingly is about, how do we address income inequality? How do we restore the middle class?”
“I don’t think most Americans think that billionaires are the ones who are going to help give us a more fair economy,” he said.
