After Trump calls Harris a ‘fascist’ and a ‘lunatic,’ GOP leaders scold Harris for ‘dangerous rhetoric’

As Donald Trump’s rhetoric grows more incendiary in the final days of the election, House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell have called out the “dangerous rhetoric” coming from one candidate — Kamala Harris.

In a joint statement on Friday, the Republican leaders criticized Harris for what they called her “reckless invocations of the darkest evil of the 20th century,” in reference to her agreeing with the assessment of Trump’s former chief of staff John Kelly, who said the GOP nominee qualifies as a “fascist.”

Johnson and McConnell urged Harris to “abandon the base and irresponsible rhetoric that endangers both American lives and institutions,” saying it could lead to another attempt on Trump’s life.

“Labeling a political opponent as a ‘fascist,’ risks inviting yet another would-be assassin to try robbing voters of their choice before Election Day,” they said.

Johnson and McConnell seem either unaware of — or unbothered by — the deep irony of ignoring Trump’s own rhetoric. Trump has made insulting his opponents in deeply personal terms a hallmark of his political career. As I noted, his rhetoric has grown more menacing and his attacks on his opponents more belligerent. In the past week alone, he has called Harris “dumb,” “stupid,” “a s— vice president,” a “lunatic,” and he baselessly suggested that she has a substance abuse problem. What’s more, Trump himself has explicitly called Harris a “fascist” on the campaign trail, with nary a peep from Johnson or McConnell.

That the GOP leaders would admonish Harris instead of Trump fits a pattern of Republicans dismissing, defending or feigning ignorance of their nominee’s most outrageous rhetoric. Meanwhile, Harris has held her ground, responding to Johnson and McConnell’s statement by saying “no one should be the subject of violence, much less political violence.”

“But,” she added, “the American people deserve to be presented with facts and the truth.”