Biden’s former press secretary Jen Psaki is blasted for demanding Republicans change their ‘rhetoric’ and ‘tone’ or face ‘retaliation’ after Trump shooting

Biden’s former spokesperson Jen Psaki has faced criticism after she demanded that Republicans tone down their “rhetoric” following shots fired at Donald Trump on Saturday.

Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, grazed Trump’s ear, killing one bystander and wounding two more before a Secret Service agent shot him dead.

Donald Trump’s family and supporters have criticized the left-wing media for downplaying Saturday night’s assassination attempt and publishing deadpan opinion pieces in the wake of the atrocity.

Appearing on Meet the Press on Sunday, Psaki further angered Republicans by putting the onus on them to stop the anger.

“One thing we all have to remember is that tomorrow or Tuesday it may not seem like it’s going to be quiet. And part of that is because the convention is starting and unless the programming changes, the rhetoric and the way the programming is set up, it’s not really going to calm the tone or restore civility,” she said.

“We’ll see if that programming changes, but if it stays the same, that’s an escalation. It’s not a polite approach to a convention,” the former press secretary added.

Psaki immediately faced criticism on social media, similar to the way Trump’s family criticized the press earlier this weekend.

A user on X wrote: “Jen Psaki said the Republicans set a ‘tone’ but it’s Biden and the Dems who called Trump a Nazi, a rapist, a thug, a terrorist. They called MAGA supporters domestic terrorists and cultists. Biden promised unity but instead incited violence and division. GO TO HELL.”

“Stop lying and adding fuel to the fire and you won’t be afraid anymore,” added another.

She then joined her media colleagues in calling for an end to the angry rhetoric.

“For anyone who has a platform and thinks now is the time to be political and attack the other side, you are fueling the danger. You are making it more likely that there will be retaliation. I am incredibly scared. I am scared for journalists. I am scared for people who have public platforms from all parties,” she said.

Right-wing commentator Stephen Miller said, “Every living thing mattered in an assassination attempt on the Republican presidential candidate.”

“You should probably have thought about that before you started treating basic standards and journalistic objectivity like a piñata,” said another user on X.

CNN, The New York Times and NBC have been fiercely criticized by Republicans online for their responses to one of the worst cases of violence in American political history.

Publishers were criticized for describing gunshots as “loud bangs” and for describing Trump as “falling” from the stage without referring to the assassination attempt.

The New York Times also faced criticism for publishing an op-ed titled “Donald Trump Is Unfit to Lead,” which encouraged voters to “reject him in November” on the morning after the shooting.

The title page shows a menacing silhouette of Trump’s side profile, backlit. It also reads: ‘He failed the tests of leadership and betrayed America.’

The president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., led the criticism of X, calling CNN “disgusting” and “a disgrace” for its coverage of the campaign incident in Butler, Pennsylvania.

He shared a 30-second clip from CNN in which reporter Jamie Gangel pointed out that Trump stood up and said “fight, fight, fight” in the seconds after he was shot.

“What we’re hearing from people is that this is not the message we want to send right now. We want to tone down the message,” Gangel said of the backlash.

In a fiery response to the tweet, Trump Jr. said: “Someone tried to kill my father tonight and that’s what CNN is focusing on. These people are despicable.”

The network also came under heavy criticism for running a headline that read, “Secret Service chases Trump off stage after he falls during rally,” without any mention of a shooting.

Meanwhile, critics have taken issue with the headline in The New York Times newspaper Sunday morning, “Trump Wounded, But Safe, After Shooting,” which presented the atrocity in the mildest possible light.

Critics also pointed out that the newspaper cropped out the American flag flying above Trump in the photo of him raising a fist in the air and with blood running down his face, moments after being hit in the right ear by a bullet.

NBC was criticized for describing the former president as “holding his ear” after “popping noises” were heard at the campaign rally.

Gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, PA, fired multiple rounds from a rooftop, including one that struck Trump in the ear. It happened just days before the former president was set to accept the 2024 Republican nomination.

Crooks, a registered Republican who donated $15 to the liberal political action committee ActBlue on Biden’s 2021 Inauguration Day, killed former Fire Chief Corey Comperatore and wounded two other people before police shot him.

The Biden administration sent the president back to the White House from his home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, immediately after the shooting. He condemned the shooting of X.