Donald Trump's "Second Amendment people" remarks, interpreted to suggest the assassination of Hillary Clinton, may also show the GOP nominee doesn't have a positive opinion about his own supporters, according to Slate's Leon Neyfakh.
During a North Carolina rally, Trump told the crowd "Hillary wants to essentially abolish the Second Amendment" and if she "gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do, folks. Though the Second Amendment people — maybe there is, I don't know."
Neyfakh writes that Trump, without meaning to, showed "he believes gun enthusiasts are crazy."
The subtext of the term "Second Amendment people," implies they are a group to be looked down upon.
"When you use this phrase, it means you think the 'people' have dumb or at least outré preferences and don't deserve to be taken seriously," Neyfakh writes, adding the comment was "a casual crack at their expense."
Trump's "I don't know" comment implies, "Who knows what those loons are capable of?"
The GOP nominee has presented positions on issues that run counter to Republican beliefs, Neyfakh writes, and he has reversed his own opinions on those beliefs.
Neyfakh points to a YouTube video that contrasts some comments Trump has made in the past.
In the video, Trump expresses support for abortion, the Iraq War, Hillary Clinton, among other issues. Then in a follow-up clip, he says he's against those same issues.
Trump has pointed to the truth of his own beliefs, but not on purpose.
"While he deserves every bit of condemnation he receives for joking about assassination in such a cavalier way, it would be a shame if people missed the deeper revelation here. It's not every day that Trump accidentally tells the truth," Neyfakh writes.
The Washington Post's Paul Waldeman also criticized Trump's comments, from the perspective of the real estate mogul's history advocating violence.
Walderman points to when Trump told the audience he'd "like to punch him in the face," referring to a protester at one of his rallies. He "isn't going to get the benefit of the doubt when it comes to advocating violence, and that's no one's fault but his."
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