Illinois Governor JB Pritzker has launched a blistering attack on Donald Trump during a live broadcast on MSNBC, calling him a liar and a narcissist and questioning his mental fitness.
Speaking to presenter Jen Psaki, Pritzker alleged the president is suffering from dementia, comparing his current behaviour to his 2015 campaign. He said: "He's a persistent liar and a narcissist, and honestly, suffering from dementia. We've seen that over and over again. Just compare how he was when he ran in 2015. You could disagree with him back then, but he didn't sound truly out of his mind. Now he does."
9/11 claim branded untrue
The outburst came after Trump claimed during a 9/11 commemoration event in Washington on Tuesday, September 8, that two firefighters physically lifted him to safety after the September 11 attacks. He described how firefighters grabbed him and ran with him when a nearby building appeared to be in danger of collapsing.
Pritzker dismissed the story, saying: "This absolutely is untrue. He's hoping that the American public is going to somehow see whatever picture he's painting now, but not reality." He added that voters can see Trump has been "bad for them" when they go to the grocery store, fill up their gas tank, or fill up the tractor at the farm.
Warning over presidency
The governor warned that Trump has "his finger on the nuclear button" and called for Congress to stand up to him and push back. He said: "We've got 20, what, 28 months left of this presidency. We're going to have to make sure that we've got a Congress that's keeping him in check."
According to The New York Times, Trump has repeatedly claimed he took a construction crew to Lower Manhattan after the attacks and was heavily involved in the recovery effort. However, his account has been challenged by people who were actually involved in the operation at Ground Zero.
