Dems need to stop with 'existential threat' rhetoric about Trump: Former AG Barr

Former Attorney General William Barr told Fox News that "the Democrats have to stop their grossly irresponsible talk about Trump being an existential threat to democracy. He is not."

The statement came just hours after a would-be assassin shot at former President Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Republicans lost no time tying the attack to rhetoric from Democrats accusing Trump of being authoritarian, a dictator or anti-democracy.

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Former U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr has called on Democrats to end their rhetoric about former President Trump as an "existential threat to democracy." (Fox News/Getty Images)

Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, a contender for Trump's running mate, after the attack posted on X, "Today is not just some isolated incident. The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs. That rhetoric led directly to President Trump's attempted assassination."

President Biden came under scrutiny after the shooting for remarks he made to donors on July 8, in which he said "it’s time to put Trump in a bullseye," Politico reported.

Former President Trump is taken off the stage by Secret Service agents after a gunman attempted to shoot him at a campaign event at Butler Farm Show Inc. in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024. (Rebecca Droke/AFP via Getty Images)

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On Saturday morning, Vice President Kamala Harris said on X that she would be attending a town hall "to discuss what’s at stake this election and the clear threat the former president represents to our democracy."

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., implied on July 11 that Trump supporters pose a threat to Americans, saying, "They’re saying it straight to your face: If you can disagree with Donald Trump, watch your back. It’s bone-chilling. It’s un-American. It’s dangerous for our democracy."

Former Attorney General William Barr said the real threat to democracy is the "excesses of the progressive left." (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said on July 8 that Biden and Democrats will keep defending democracy "at home and abroad," saying, "We must overcome threats from MAGA Republicans as we fight to protect our freedoms, strengthen alliances and advance opportunity and dignity for all."

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Barr served as Trump's attorney general from February 2019 until his resignation in December 2020. Despite the sometimes acrimonious relationship between Trump and Barr, the former attorney general has endorsed Trump for president and has said that the real threat to democracy is the "excesses of the progressive left."