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Donald Trump supporter threatens to assassinate Hillary Clinton if she wins

Supporters' continue to use violent rhetoric against Clinton as Election Day inches closer

Feliks Garcia
New York
Monday 17 October 2016 17:33 BST
Donald Trump supporter threatens to 'take out' Hillary Clinton

As Donald Trump intensifies his calls to imprison his opponent, Hillary Clinton, his supporters are making much more ominous assertions about the Democratic candidate.

Mr Trump has reiterated his claim that the election will be rigged, in preparation for a loss to the former Secretary of State. He continues to assert that Ms Clinton should be locked up for general corruption, while his supporters appear to take this message to heart.

A Trump supporter in Cincinnati went so far as to suggest he would take matters into his own hands should Ms Clinton win the race to the White House, hoping for a “coup” or “revolution”.

“I feel like Hillary needs to be taken out if she gets in the government,” Dan Bowman, 50, told CNN. “I’ll do everything in my power to take her out of power – which, if I have to be a patriot, I will.”

When asked if he was physically threatening Ms Clinton, he answered: “I don’t know, is it?”

In a previous interview with the Boston Globe, the same man said he hoped for a coup to remove Ms Clinton from office.

“If she’s in office, I hope we can start a coup. She should be in prison or shot. That’s how I feel about it,” he said. “We’re going to have a revolution and take them out of office if that’s what it takes. There’s going to be a lot of bloodshed. But that’s what it’s going to take. …

“I would do whatever I can for my country.”

A spokesperson for the US Secret Service told The Independent that the agency became aware of Mr Bowman's threat on Monday. They added: "The Secret Service does not provide information regarding protective operations."

The Trump campaign distanced themselves any threats of violence made by their supporters, however.

"We reject violence in any form and will not allow it to be a part of our campaign," the campaign said in a statement. "Those who hold unacceptable views do not represent the millions of Americans who are tired of the rigged Washington system that will make their voices heard at the ballot box on November 8."

Mr Trump stirred controversy in August when he suggested that “Second Amendment people” could take up arms against either Ms Clinton or her potential Supreme Court picks.

“If she gets to pick her judges, there’s nothing you can do, folks,” he said. “Although the Second Amendment people – maybe there is, I don’t know.”

For their part, the Trump campaign has dismissed their candidate’s calls for Ms Clinton’s imprisonment and the hint at assassination as jokes and sarcasm. But as Election Day looms and Mr Trump continues to freefall in the polls, his supporters may still take his message literally.

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