US politicians react sharply to Trump's remarks about Los Angeles and San Diego

Members of both the Republican and Democratic parties in the United States have spoken out in unison against President Donald Trump's remarks about the California cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, after he suggested those cities could be "sacrificed" in a war with Iran.

The backlash intensified on Tuesday, a day after Trump said at a midterm campaign rally in Nebraska that Americans must be prepared to accept sacrifices to win what he called the US–Israel war against Iran.

According to him, those sacrifices could include American cities being destroyed in the event of an Iranian attack.

"That's a very small price to pay to keep the world safe, to keep our country safe," Trump said, apparently referring to the knock-on consequences of the war, including higher fuel and fertilizer prices.

"They can knock down a city. Let them knock down Los Angeles. Let them knock down San Diego. This is a very small price, and it will all be over very soon."

Trump has repeatedly played down the impact of the war – now in its eighth month – despite polls showing the conflict is unpopular with the American public. He has also repeatedly promised the war will end soon, yet no lasting ceasefire has been reached so far.

Reaction to the Nebraska remarks was swift. California Governor Gavin Newsom, a fierce Trump critic, called the US president "unhinged."

"This is not just insanity. This is dangerous," Newsom said in a video on the social media platform X, while calling on Congress to restrain Trump's behavior.

Newsom, seen as a potential candidate for the 2028 presidential race, has clashed with Trump repeatedly. Last year, the two sides argued over Trump's decision to deploy federal forces to California to support a crackdown on undocumented immigrants in the Los Angeles area. In December, a federal judge ruled that the deployment was unlawful and ordered it to end. Newsom, who opposed the deployment, revisited that episode when commenting on Trump's Nebraska rally.

"The President of the United States – the very man who sent the National Guard to Los Angeles, who sent 700 active-duty Marines to America's second-largest city – just invited Iran to knock down Los Angeles and San Diego," Newsom said.

He added that Trump's remarks should persuade those who "thought the November election didn't matter" to vote in the coming midterms.

Some members of Trump's own party also expressed shock at the remarks. Jim Desmond, a Republican candidate running in a closely contested area near San Diego, was among those who distanced himself from Trump's statement.

"I strongly oppose President Trump's comments. America must be tough on Iran and protect our interests, but a commander in chief's first responsibility is to protect the American people and our homeland," Desmond wrote on X.

"No American city can be treated as expendable, and no American family deserves to be treated as collateral damage."

Congressman Kevin Kiley, a politician who runs as an independent but caucuses with Republicans and is seeking re-election in northern California, also called Trump's comments "unhelpful."

The White House, however, rejected the criticism, calling it part of a "media meltdown" and "not grounded in reality."

"He is clearly saying that American cities would be threatened if a nuclear-armed Iran is not stopped," White House Communications Director Steven Cheung wrote on social media.

"America is safer because of the President. Iran has no nuclear weapons, no navy, no air force and no money."

California is the most populous state and has the largest economy in the United States. Because of its large population, the state also holds the most seats in the House of Representatives, with 52.

All 435 House seats will be up for re-election in the November midterms, along with one-third of Senate seats. Key state and local races will also be on the ballot.

With Republicans' control of Congress under challenge, the midterm results are forecast to heavily influence the final two years of Trump's second term.