President Donald Trump on Monday night reportedly warned evangelical Christian leaders there will be “violence” if Republicans lose their majority in Congress as a result of November’s midterm elections.
Trump suggested Democrats would “quickly” and “violently” overturn gains he’s made for conservative Christians, according to excerpts of the closed-door meeting obtained by NBC News.
“You’re one election away from losing everything that you’ve got,” Trump allegedly said. “The level of hatred, the level of anger is unbelievable.”
Trump apparently went on to say that the midterm elections are not only a referendum on him.
If Republicans lose big to Democrats, Trump reportedly warned, “they will overturn everything that we’ve done and they’ll do it quickly and violently, and violently. There’s violence. When you look at Antifa and you look at some of these groups – these are violent people.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
During Monday’s meeting, Trump also reportedly repeated a previously debunked claim that he’d gotten rid of a law that prohibits churches and charitable organizations from endorsing political candidates. Presidents do not have the constitutional authority to repeal laws.
Trump was apparently referencing what is known as the Johnson Amendment. In May, Trump signed an executive order aimed at undermining the law, but legal experts have said say the executive step was largely symbolic. Efforts to kill the law in Congress have stalled.