In Other News · United States · Politics

Source: Axios

California leaders blasted President Trump after he said during a Monday rally about Iran, "Let them take out Los Angeles. Let them take out San Diego."The big picture: The backlash — and the White House's insistence that Trump was misunderstood — underscored the ambiguity of his meandering speech: An argument that the war was worth enduring to protect Americans came out sounding like an invitation to attack two U.S. cities.An administration account posted on X that Trump meant that the U.S. was fighting Iran to "STOP Iran from having the ability to take out LA and San Diego."Driving the news: Faced with an unpopular war and stubbornly high gas prices, Trump seemingly argued that the current economic pain is "a small price to pay for keeping the world safe, keeping our country safe" during his Nebraska rally."It's a small price to pay for keeping the world safe, keeping our country safe," he said. "They can take out a city. Let them take, let it — let them take out Los Angeles. Let them take out San Diego. That's — this is a very small price to pay, and it's gonna be over very soon."Friction point: The comment received swift backlash...