Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at a rally hosted by Club 47 USA at the Palm Beach County Convention Center on October 11, 2023 in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Alon Scuy | Getty Images
Former President Donald Trump said in a Fox News town hall on Tuesday that he will not be a dictator “except from day one” if he is elected president next year.
Trump’s comments at a taped event in Iowa came in response to host Sean Hannity asking him if he would abuse the power of office to seek revenge.
“You are pledging to the United States tonight that you will never abuse force in retaliation against anyone?” Hannity said.
“Except for one day,” Trump replied, repeating the phrase.
Asked for clarification, Trump said, “I want to close the border and I want to drill, I want to drill.”
Moments later, Trump doubled down on his comments.
“I love this guy,” Trump said, pointing to Hannity. “He says, ‘You’re not going to be a dictator, are you?’ I said: ‘No, no, no, except from the first day.’ We’re closing the border, and we’re drilling, drilling, drilling. After all, I’m not a dictator.
The Biden campaign quickly seized on the comments, posting a clip of the exchange to X. After the town hall ended, Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez-Rodriguez blasted Trump in a statement.
“Donald Trump has been telling us what he would do if he was re-elected and tonight he said he would be a dictator on day one,” he said. “Americans should believe him.”
Trump’s comments came after he did not directly answer an earlier question from Hannity about whether he planned to “abuse power, break the law, use the government to go after people.”
“You mean what they’re using now?” Trump responded, apparently pointing at Democrats.
The town hall — at times raucous amid what looked like a solidly pro-Trump audience — took place in Davenport a day before the fourth Republican debate, in which Trump said he would not participate. He has left out the last three.
Trump maintains a large lead in polls over his Republican rivals. An NBC News poll last month found that 58 percent of Republican voters consider Trump their first choice in the GOP primaries. In contrast, only 18% of voters considered Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis their top choice.
During the town hall, Trump said his campaign will “blow up” Iowa in the weeks before the nation’s first caucuses on Jan. 15.
“We’re not taking any chances,” he said.