CNN’s Kaitlan Collins Rips ‘Extreme’ Trump Execution Rant — Calls Out Stunning Briefing Scene

CNN anchor and Senior White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins ripped President Donald Trump over his rant about executing Democrats and called out the stunning scene that unfolded at White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt’s briefing on Thursday.

A group of Democrats — all military veterans — posted a video this week reminding servicemembers and intelligence officers “You can refuse illegal orders.”

That clip prompted President Donald Trump to go on a social media spree, calling for the execution of the Democrats who participated in the video, and Leavitt to spend a good portion of the briefing defending it — and falsely accusing the Democrats.

On Thursday night’s edition of CNN’s The Source with Kaitlan Collins, the host called out Trump’s “extreme” rant and the extraordinary questions it raised at that briefing — as well as Leavitt’s falsehoods:

KAITLAN COLLINS: President Trump has said so much and blown past so many norms, over the last decade, that even some of his most inflammatory comments and outbursts no longer grab headlines. But the President’s post, this morning, accusing Democrats of seditious behavior, punishable by death, certainly has prompted an uproar, here in Washington tonight.

It was just one of 19 posts or reposts that we saw, from the President tonight, in response to a video that featured half a dozen Democratic members of Congress. All six of them served in the military or the intelligence community, before their political careers. And their video message was aimed directly at current service members.

(VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Now, the Commander-in-Chief did not take kindly to that message. His reaction was so extreme, that the White House press secretary was asked to clarify something that maybe no White House press secretary has ever been asked to clarify before.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REPORTER: Just to be clear, does the President want to execute members of Congress?

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: No. Let’s be clear about what the President is responding to, because many in this room want to talk about the President’s response, but not what brought the President to responding in this way.

You have sitting members of the United States Congress, who conspired together, to orchestrate a video message to members, of the United States military, to active-duty service members, to members of the national security apparatus, encouraging them to defy the President’s lawful orders.

Why aren’t you talking about what these members of Congress are doing, to encourage and incite violence?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Now, as the press secretary was trying to shift the focus off the President’s statements today, and on to what the Democrats said in that video. She did not respond, when I pointed out that she had actually misquoted what those Democrats said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEAVITT: Thank you.

COLLINS: Karoline, you misquoted Democrats in that video. That’s actually not what they said.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Now, when it comes to this video, the Uniform Code of Military Justice is clear on what members of the American military must do, if they are given an order that violates the Constitution, international human rights standards, or the rules of war. Article 92 states that all service members are required to disobey any unlawful orders they receive.

The White House today offered this interpretation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEAVITT: Every single order that is given to this United States military, by this Commander-in-Chief, and through this chain of command, through the Secretary of War, is lawful. And the courts have proven that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Watch above via CNN’s The Source with Kaitlan Collins.