House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) told Fox News host Sean Hannity on Thursday that Donald Trump did not attack Milwaukee in a closed-door meeting with Republicans, after Trump admitted to doing just that.
Republicans have been struggling to clean up Trump’s remarks at the meeting in which he said, “Milwaukee, where we are having our convention, is a horrible city,” according to Punchbowl News’ Jake Sherman.
Later Thursday evening, Hannity asked Johnson outright if Trump “took a shot at Milwaukee?”.
“No. I didn’t hear it and I was sitting right next to him,” Johnson said in a clip highlighted by Mediaite. “I introduced him this morning at breakfast where he started the day.”
But, Trump himself admitted to taking a shot at Milwaukee earlier during an interview on Fox News when asked to clarify his comment.
“It was very clear what I meant. I said, we’re very concerned with crime. I love Milwaukee….the crime numbers are terrible. We have to be very careful. But I was referring to also the election, the ballots, the way it went down, it was very bad in Milwaukee. Very, very bad. And the people understand that and they agree with me,” Trump said.
“Milwaukee has a problem with crime, as do most Democrat run cities,” he continued. “Most Democrat-run cities, almost all of them have problems. But they also have a problem with votes.”
Despite Trump’s claim, crime is actually down across Milwaukee in the first quarter of the year.
Homicides have decreased 39 percent, property crime is down 11 percent and auto thefts are down 10 percent compared to the same period last year, according to Milwaukee police.
Furthermore, there was not widespread fraud in the election in Milwaukee as Trump claims and several of the former president’s associates are facing charges related to their attempt to overturn the result of the election in Wisconsin.
