Trump claims the media is misrepresenting his comments on gas prices in San Diego and L.A.

President Donald Trump has accused what he calls “Fake and Artificial News” of misrepresenting his remarks about Iran and two significant U.S. cities.

At a recent rally in Nebraska, Trump focused on oil and gas prices linked to the situation in Iran, and he specifically mentioned Los Angeles and San Diego.

“With the war, it’s just artificial. It’s a little bit high, it’s a small price to pay for keeping the world safe, keeping our country safe. They can take out a city, let them take — let them take out Los Angeles, let them take out San Diego. That’s — this is a very small price to pay, and it’s going to be over with very soon,” he stated.

“But it’s going to end very soon, and it’ll end one way or the other, and your gas and your gasoline and all of the things…” he added.

His statements sparked a media uproar, leading some critics to accuse him of trivializing or even inviting a foreign attack on those cities.

In response, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung defended Trump’s comments.

“The media freakout over President Trump’s comments is not rooted in reality. He was clearly stating U.S. cities would have been threatened if a nuclear Iran hadn’t been stopped,” Cheung noted on social media.

Trump also addressed the backlash on Truth Social, clarifying that his comments were about gas prices.

“The Fake and Artificial News is out there trying to say that I’m inviting the enemy to bomb San Diego and Los Angeles when, in actuality, what I was talking about was that a temporary increase in the price of Gasoline is a small price to pay for Iran not having a nuclear weapon,” he elaborated.

He criticized the media for mischaracterizing his intentions, insisting that he was merely contrasting the cost of gasoline with the potential devastation from a bombing.

“All I was doing was making a comparison between paying a little more, for a short time, for gasoline, versus the bombing of our major cities. Everybody knew that, the Fake News knew it as well, but they continue to go out and say that I am asking the enemy to bomb two cities that I love. It’s totally clear what I say, but these people are degenerates, and think they can continuously get away with Fake News!” he said.

California Governor Gavin Newsom interpreted Trump’s remarks differently, viewing them as a threat to the two largest cities in the nation.

“After sending the National Guard and Marines to occupy California, Donald Trump is now saying our foreign enemies should ‘take out’ Los Angeles and San Diego,” he tweeted.

“Trump thinks he will scare people into voting for MAGA candidates by threatening the bombing of over 16 million Americans,” Newsom added later.