“Can’t you just shoot them? Just shoot them in the legs or something?” Trump asked according to an excerpt from Esper’s book The Holy Oath, Axios reported.
A Trump spokesman did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment.
CNN has previously reported similar accounts, including those documented by journalist Michael Bender in his own book, “Honestly, We Won This Election: The Inside Story of Trump’s Loss.”
Last year, Bender’s book revealed new details about how Trump repeatedly called on law enforcement to shoot at protesters during meetings in the Oval Office.
“Just shoot them,” Trump said several times in the Oval Office, according to Bender’s book.
When Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Millie and then Attorney General Bill Barr rebuff, Trump softened it, but only slightly, Bender added.
“Well, shoot them in the leg, or maybe in the leg,” Trump said. “But be firm with them!”
Earlier this month, CNN reported that the Department of Justice had reached an agreement to settle four lawsuits filed by protesters who were forcibly expelled from Lafayette Square in Washington during a 2020 racial justice protest in front of the White House.
The U.S. Park Police and the U.S. Secret Service have agreed to reconsider their policies regarding demonstration and crowd control, according to an agreement filed in the District of Columbia.
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