Donald Trump openly mused about risking World War III to GOP donors in New Orleans Saturday night, according to The Washington Post, and the reception was reflective of the Republican Party’s approach to him: lockstep support. In his 84-minute speech, Trump said the U.S. should “bomb the shit out of Russia” using planes marked with the Chinese flag. “And then we say, China did it, we didn’t do it, China did it, and then they start fighting with each other and we sit back and watch,” Trump said to laughter from the crowd, according to the Post. Trump’s claims were cushioned between his continued insistence the 2020 election was stolen from him (it was not) and his praise of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un as “seriously tough.” They also came days after Fox News host Sean Hannity suggested NATO planes should bomb Russia and feign ignorance. Mike Pence also spoke at the confab, in which he appeared to discreetly chastise Trump for past Putin praise. “There is no room in this party for apologists for Putin,” he said.
