













Trump Names Pelosi and Schiff as 'the Enemy From Within'


























 

































 


 
























































































×


 


 























×




			Skip to main content		


















 Rollingstone Logo







Click to expand the Mega Menu








Click to Expand Search Input














	Music



	Politics



	TV & Movies



	Culture



	RS Recommends









	Got A Tip?




	Account




	Welcome



	Manage Account



	Manage Print Account



	Sign Out







	Log In




















Click to expand the Mega Menu








Click to Expand Search Input










 Rollingstone Logo






	Politics



	
		
					Trump Names Pelosi and Schiff as ‘the Enemy From Within’		
			





Facebook







X







email










	Got A Tip?




	Account




	Welcome



	Manage Account



	Manage Print Account



	Sign Out







	Log In


















 













										'bad people'						
 









Trump Names Pelosi and Schiff as ‘the Enemy From Within’
The former president quadrupled down on labeling domestic opponents as his enemy 








							By 

	Peter Wade





	
		
					Peter Wade		
			



Contact Peter Wade on X





Contact Peter Wade by Email









	Trump Tells GOP to Bypass Senate Confirmation Process, Block Biden Judicial Appointments



	House Fast-Tracks Bill That Would Give Trump Power to Target Nonprofits



	Sanders: ‘The Working Class Is Angry, and They Have Reason to Be’





	View all posts by Peter Wade







	October 20, 2024	















Donald Trump on Aug. 23, 2024, in Las Vegas. 
Daniel Jacobi II/Getty Images







Donald Trump is not backing down from his fascistic remarks about “the enemy from within,” comments he has made repeatedly in recent weeks. Instead he’s naming Democratic Reps. Nancy Pelosi and Adam Schiff as part of said “enemy from within.”

	In earlier comments made on Oct. 13, the former president said that “radical left lunatics… the enemy from within… should be very easily handled, if necessary, by the National Guard, or if really necessary, by the military.” He also spoke of “the enemy from within” on Sept. 3 and Oct. 16.

	During an interview that aired Sunday on Fox News with Howard Kurtz, Trump took the remarks further, attacking Pelosi and Schiff. 

	“Of course he’s an enemy,” Trump said of Schiff. “He wanted to put my son in jail, and my son didn’t even know what he was talking about. He wanted to put my son in jail on as scam he made up called Russia, Russia, Russia. He, Hillary Clinton and a group of people made up a scam, and they came out of a room, and they said Donald Trump Jr. will be going to jail over this… It had nothing to do with him.”

	










	Schiff investigated Trump’s son’s June 2016 meeting with someone he believed was a “Russian government attorney” in Trump Tower. During the meeting, according to an email to Trump Jr. from publicist Rob Goldstone, who represented the son of an Azerbaijani-Russian businessman with ties to the Russian government, the Russians “offered to provide the Trump campaign with some official documents and information that would incriminate Hillary and her dealings with Russia.”

	“This is obviously very high level and sensitive information but is part of Russia and its government’s support for Mr. Trump,” Goldstone said in the email to Trump Jr.

	“If it’s what you say I love it,” Trump Jr. replied.

	In the Fox News interview, the former president attacked Schiff once again for his Russia investigation. “That’s an enemy from within. That’s really — that is a threat to democracy,” he said. “These are bad people. We have a lot of bad people. But when you look at shifty Schiff and some of the others, they are to me the enemy from within.”





	
		Editor’s picks
	
	











	
	
		
					The 100 Best TV Episodes of All Time		
	














	
	
		
					The 250 Greatest Albums of the 21st Century So Far		
	














	
	
		
					The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time		
	














	
	
		
					The 200 Greatest Singers of All Time		
	








	Schiff reacted to Trump’s comments in a post on X: “Trump continues to threaten military action against his domestic ‘enemies,'” the congressman wrote. “He seeks to justify it with the usual falsehoods about his impeachment and Jan 6. But there is no justification for such dictatorial behavior. Except dictatorial ambition.”

	










	Trump next named Pelosi as another “enemy.” “I think Nancy Pelosi is an enemy from within,” he said. “She lied, and she was supposed to protect the Capitol… she said, ‘This is my responsibility,’ I admit it.”

	In response to Trump, Pelosi spokesperson Ian Krager said in a statement to Rolling Stone, “The former President is showing himself to be increasingly unhinged and unstable. In talking about turning our military on his political opponents and the American people, Donald Trump is showing once again why his election would be a disaster for our country and our democracy.”

	Continuing on the topic of Jan. 6, Trump reiterated his lies about the Capitol attack, remarking on the size of the crowd at the Save America rally that immediately preceded the riot, where Trump told his supporters to “fight like hell” to stop the certification of the election. Six times in his interview with Kurtz, Trump said that the Jan. 6 audience was the biggest he ever addressed.

	Kurtz asked Trump, “Jan. 6, the other day you called it a ‘day of love.’ That sparked a lot of reaction given that many police officers were attacked, and there were mobs shouting, ‘Hang Mike Pence.’ Do you understand why many Americans would view it as a dark and tragic day in our history?”





	
		Related Content
	
	






	
	
		
					Trump Sides With Putin, Trashes Zelensky as a 'Dictator'		
	









	
	
		
					'We're All Paying for It': Kash Patel Called Out Elon Musk for Getting Rich Off Taxpayers		
	









	
	
		
					Trump Orders Independent Agencies to Follow His Read of the Law, Not the Courts		
	









	
	
		
					Elon Musk’s Empty Hunt for Condoms Is Causing Real Harm		
	








	“The crowd I spoke before, which you rarely see — I have pictures of it, massive, but nobody wants to put them in — was the biggest crowd I’ve ever spoken to,” Trump replied. “And I’ve spoken to the biggest crowds. I’ve never seen that many people. A small group of them — and you know peacefully and patriotically, which nobody uses. My words were ‘peacefully and patriotically.’ A small group went down to the Capitol, but they came because they thought it was a rigged election. This was a protest against a rigged election. I can’t say exactly the number, but I’ve had massive crowds, and this was by far the biggest crowd. I’ve spoken to the crowd at the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial on the fourth of July. This crowd was bigger. And I tell you, there was a beauty to it, and there was a love to it that I’ve never seen before. A small group of people went down to the Capitol, and then a lot of strange things happened, including police ushering them into the Capitol. I mean you know that. And a lot of strange things. I’m not referring to that. When I saw that tremendous crowd, the largest group I’ve ever spoken to, in front of these beautiful monuments, I thought actually it was a beautiful thing.”

	Trump then complained that Jan. 6 rioters were not treated the same as other protesters (of course, no other “protesters” have breached Capitol security, forced an evacuation, and took over the Senate and House floors). “It was a protest. If other groups protest… whatever they may be protesting, nobody says anything. You know, they have a right to protest,” Trump whined.

	“There was a lot of violence,” Kurtz replied. “Twelve hundred people pled guilty or were convicted; 600 were charged with assaulting police officers or rioting. You’re somebody who you say you’re on the side of law enforcement. You seem not to have much sympathy for the police on that day.”

	










	Trump argued that there is “nobody closer to the police than I am — nobody.” He then tried to lie and say that there was “nobody killed” and “nobody had guns” on Jan. 6.

	“There were people with guns who were arrested,” Kurtz corrected. 

	“Really? Then I’d like to know. You mean at the rally?” Trump said incredulously. He then asked if Kurtz meant they had “some guns at their home.” 

	“No,” the host responded. “At the rally.”

	“Well, I have not heard that at all,” Trump claimed. “I don’t think so. They had no guns. It was a peaceful… When I made that speech, I’ve never seen anything like it… They protested an election. I think you have the right to protest in this country.”

	A PolitiFact review of Jan. 6 defendants’ case files found that several defendants possessed firearms, according to police. Some were carrying the firearms with them to the Capitol while others stored them nearby.

	Trump himself knew members of the crowd were carrying guns, according to testimony from Cassidy Hutchinson, a former aide to then-Chief of Staff Mark Meadows. Hutchinson told the Jan. 6 Committee that Trump wanted Secret Service to stop using magnometers to screen attendees for weapons and instead allow gun-toting supporters into the area where he would be speaking.

	Hutchinson testified that she overheard Trump say something along the lines of, “I don’t fucking care that they have weapons. They’re not here to hurt me. Take the fucking [magnometers] away. Let my people in. They can march to the Capitol from here.”



	But facts do not matter to the former president, who has become increasingly fascist in his rhetoric while he and his party lay the groundwork for challenging the results of the 2024 election.

This story has been updated to include a statement from a spokesperson for Pelosi and a statement from Schiff.
 




In this article:



	Adam Schiff,



	Donald Trump,



	Jan. 6,



	Nancy Pelosi









	Politics



	Politics News











More News 






















	
		
					DOGE Finds Zero Fraud, Waste, or Abuse, Just New Ways to Harm Veterans		
			





	Commentary





						By 

	
Michael Embrich 

























	
		
					Trump’s D.C. Prosecutor Declares: ‘We Will Protect DOGE’		
			





	Operation Whirlwind





						By 

	
Nikki McCann Ramirez, Andrew Perez, and Asawin Suebsaeng 

























	
		
					Trump Sides With Putin, Trashes Zelensky as a 'Dictator'		
			





	War Games





						By 

	
Nikki McCann Ramirez and Asawin Suebsaeng 

























	
		
					Trump Orders Independent Agencies to Follow His Read of the Law, Not the Courts		
			





	Executive Power





						By 

	
Nikki McCann Ramirez 

























	
		
					Elon Musk’s Empty Hunt for Condoms Is Causing Real Harm		
			





	Global Health





						By 

	
Mac William Bishop 










	Read more
	

































	
		
					How to Buy ‘Rolling Stone Presents: Amplified, the Immersive Rock Experience’ Tickets Online		
			





	Play It Loud






	Feb 18, 2025 9:00 am	



















	
		
					Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban's Home 'Ransacked' During Valentine's Day Burglary		
			





	BREAK-IN






	16 mins ago	



















	
		
					Perfume Genius and Aldous Harding Whip Up the Wildest Batch of Waffles in 'No Front Teeth' Video		
			





	Freshly Made






	31 mins ago	



















	
		
					Casting Call for Green Day-Inspired Comedy Searches for 'Punks, Emo, Hardcore, Alt' Extras		
			





	Come One, Come All






	60 mins ago	






















	
	
		
					Top stories newsletter		
	


A Cultural Force That Transcends Generations 



Enter your Email















		By providing your information, you agree to our Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy.
				We use vendors that may also process your information to help provide our services.	



























 Go to PMC.com






	
		Most Popular
	
	








	
	
		
					The 100 Greatest TV Performances of the 21st Century		
	











	
	
		
					Bath & Body Works' Early Presidents' Day Deals Include Luxury Fragrance Dupes for Jo Malone, PHLUR & YSL for Just $6		
	











	
	
		
					Blink-182 Cofounder Mark Hoppus to Sell $5 M. Banksy Painting at Sotheby's in London		
	











	
	
		
					Drake Takes More Shots At Kendrick Lamar And Joe Budden On ‘$ome $exy $ongs 4 U’		
	










	
		You might also like
	
	














	
	
		
					‘Mesrine’ Filmmaker Jean-François Richet Signs With CAA (EXCLUSIVE)		
	


	55 mins ago	


















	
	
		
					Pura Vida Debuts First Collaboration With Casely With Vibrant Tech Accessories Including Phone Cases, Power Pods and More		
	


	1 hour ago	


















	
	
		
					The Best Yoga Mats for Any Practice, According to Instructors		
	


	11 months ago	


















	
	
		
					‘The Quiet Ones’ Review: A Terse and Brutal Heist Thriller About the Biggest Robbery in Danish History		
	


	4 hours ago	


















	
	
		
					Daytona 500 Sees 12% TV Audience Gain Despite Rain Delay		
	


	3 hours ago	




































Rolling Stone



	Music



	Politics



	TV & Movies



	Culture



	Staff



	Contact



	Advertise




Legal



	Privacy Policy



	Terms of Use



	AdChoices



	PMC Entertainment



	California Privacy Rights



	Your Privacy Choices



	EU Privacy Preferences



	Accessibility



	Policy on Anonymous Sources








	
	
		
					Follow Us		
	










	Facebook
	











	Instagram
	











	TikTok
	











	X
	











	YouTube
	












	
	
		
					Newsletter Signup		
	




Enter Your Email




		Subscribe	

















	
	
		
					Got a Hot News Tip?		
	

We want to hear it. Send us a tip using our anonymous form.


		Send Us a Tip	





		By providing your information, you agree to our Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy.
				We use vendors that may also process your information to help provide our services.	












Rolling Stone is a part of Penske Media Corporation. © 2025 Rolling Stone, LLC. All rights reserved.

	Powered by WordPress.com VIP




Our Sites



	Art in America



	Artforum



	Artnews



	ATX TV



	ATX TV Festival



	BGR



	Billboard



	BlogHer



	Deadline



	Flow Space



	Footwear News



	Gold Derby



	IndieWire



	LA3C



	Life is Beautiful



	Robb Report



	Rolling Stone



	SheKnows



	Soaps



	Sourcing Journal



	Sportico



	Spy



	StyleCaster



	The Hollywood Reporter



	TVLine



	Variety



	Vibe



	WWD















	Log In




	Welcome



	Manage Account



	Manage Print Account



	Sign Out






	Music




	News



	Features



	Lists



	Album Reviews



	Live Reviews



	Artists You Need To Know



	Songs You Need To Know



	RS Country



	RS Latin






	Politics




	News



	Features



	Lists






	TV & Movies




	News



	Features



	Lists



	Recaps



	Reviews






	Video & Photos




	Photos



	Videos



	The Cover



	Musicians on Musicians






	Culture




	News



	Features



	Lists



	Creators



	RS Gaming






	RS Films







	RS Recommends




	Reviews



	RS Essentials



	RS Audio Awards



	Gift Guides






	Culture Council











Subscription Icon










		Follow Us	




Facebook







Instagram







TikTok







X







YouTube










		Alerts & Newsletters	




Email Address

















		By providing your information, you agree to our Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy.
				We use vendors that may also process your information to help provide our services.	









ad


















































 




This is getting more abstract, but yes, I do love my new job.