For most of 2024, Donald Trump used anti-immigrant propaganda to campaign for the White House. In numerous recent speeches and media appearances, he has repeatedly railed against an alleged “invasion” coming across the southern U.S. border. He falsely claimed that hordes of violent and “crazy” foreigners were taking over “hundreds” of cities and raping and murdering “thousands of Americans.” His repeated pledges to deport millions of undocumented immigrants drew loud cheers at his rallies.
Stirring Americans’ fears about immigration and border security has been a hallmark of Trump’s presidency and previous campaigns. And as I have previously reported, his extreme rhetoric has led to spasms of violence, including the horrific mass shooting in El Paso, Texas, in 2019. Earlier this month, he and his running mate, JD Vance, amplified racist lies about Haitian immigrants stealing and eating pets in Springfield, Ohio, sparking fear, bomb threats and chaos in that community.
Now, in the final weeks of the presidential campaign, Trump’s rhetoric on immigrants has become darker and more ominous. In three election speeches since Friday, he has conjured shocking images of mayhem and death and spoken as if the country was on the brink of destruction. With no basis in reality, he blamed his cartoonishly bleak portrait of American carnage on his opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris.
“She allowed our American sons and daughters to be raped and murdered at the hands of evil monsters. “She has allowed the American community to be conquered,” President Trump said at a rally in Michigan last Friday, emphasizing, “They are conquering your community.”
“They will come into your kitchen,” Trump said of immigrants. “They will cut your throat.”
“These immigrants make our criminals look like babies,” Trump said the next day in Wisconsin. These are cold-blooded killers. They will come into your kitchen and cut your throat.”
In a lengthy diatribe that followed, he falsely claimed Harris had “let in 425,431 people convicted of the worst crimes.” (This was one of many ways Trump has grossly distorted 40 years of recently released data from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.) He declared that these were “a legion of criminals that Kamala unleashed to rape, pillage, steal, pillage and murder.” . “Fellow Americans.”
“Lock him up!” shouted one person in the crowd.
Trump has accused Harris of being “mentally disabled” and believed to be responsible for tens of thousands of murderers pouring into the United States. “I’ve been saying this for three years.” He soon added: “She’s letting people in who will come into your house, break into your door, and do whatever they want. “These people are animals.”
Later in his speech, he again emphasized the alleged violence by “illegal aliens” and declared: “I will free Wisconsin from the mass immigration invasion of murderers, rapists, thugs, drug dealers, thugs and vicious gangs. “I will liberate my people.”
Trump also used the impromptu moment to dehumanize immigrants in ugly terms. He claimed that English was rapidly disappearing from schools in Springfield, Ohio, and warned that if Harris were elected president, cities in Wisconsin and across the United States would “turn into Third World hellholes.” As he continued, a fly seemed to land on the podium.
“Oh, there’s a fly.” He said, shooing away flies. His tone became sarcastic. “I wonder where flies come from.”
The crowd burst into laughter.
“Look, two years ago there wouldn’t have been a fly here.” He said with a smile. “You are changing quickly.”
He delivered more of the same Sunday in Pennsylvania. “Kamala Harris has allowed vast numbers of barbaric criminal aliens to invade our country. This is an invasion.” He continued, “Last week, many people came in from Congo, a large prison in Congo, Africa. Welcome to America.”
“Please send it again!” One person in the crowd shouted angrily.
All of this was creating the specter of national destruction. Trump claimed the invasion would be larger than half the current U.S. population.
“Just wait until you see what happens,” he said. “Oh, and if I don’t go in, it will be the worst thing this country has ever been through. 150 million, 200 million will come, and this country will no longer be recognized.”
That rhetoric is indistinguishable from the “Great Replacement” ideology that motivated the El Paso shooter while President Trump was in the White House.
As I have previously reported, dehumanizing the population by inciting contempt and disgust, whether by desecrating immigrants for spreading flies, “eating dogs,” or “poisoning the blood of our nation.” This increases the likelihood that his extremist followers will: committed an act of violence; The risks posed by this type of incitement, documented in behavioral science research, are increasing due to Trump’s rhetoric, according to threat assessment and national security experts I have interviewed in recent weeks. “We’ve already seen where this is going and it could easily go there again,” one source said.
While the United States faces serious problems with immigration, a top issue for voters, Trump’s portrayal is as blatantly false as it raises serious issues. Extensive research has shown that immigrants have lower crime rates than native-born Americans. The United States has seen a sharp decline in violent crime under the Biden-Harris administration, according to FBI data. And recently, the number of migrant encounters at the border has fallen to its lowest level in four years.
It is important to recognize that Trump’s demonic rhetoric is clearly intentional. He is known for improvising, speaking and wandering along long tangents that turn bizarre and incoherent. However, much of the above inflammatory rhetoric Written in Trump’s speech. He read it from a teleprompter.
When I reported on Trump’s incitement last August, I separately contacted three of his senior campaign advisers to ask for their input on experts’ concerns that Trump’s rhetoric could lead to further violence. None of them responded, nor did they respond to my follow-up requests for this story.
