President Donald Trump, speaking at a campaign rally in Nebraska Monday, suggested Iran could “take out” Los Angeles and San Diego with a nuclear weapon — a comment that was possibly in jest but brought a quick reaction from leaders in California.

Trump said he wanted to “see a tremendous victory” in the November election, “’cause it verifies all the things we did. And again, remember, with the war it’s just artificial, it’s a little bit high,” referring to gas prices.

“It’s a small price to pay for keeping the world safe, keeping our country safe,” he continued. “They can take out a city, let ‘em take out Los Angeles, let ‘em take out San Diego. This is a very small price to pay.”

The crowd cheered.

His comment was met with criticism from California leaders — including at least one Trump-endorsed Republican candidate from San Diego.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom posted on X: “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 is deranged and dangerous.”

Then from Newsom’s press office account: “Let’s be clear: The President is advocating for an attack on 10+ million U.S. residents in two of America’s largest cities. This is not normal. None of this is. And we will continue to remind folks of that every day.”

“San Diego is not collateral damage,” San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria posted. “We are not expendable. And we are never a ‘small price to pay.’ Keep our city out of your reckless war talk.”

Trump made the remarks during a rambling speech in which he said gas prices would be lower soon, touted his ouster of Venezuela’s dictator and made attacks on news outlets.

He was in Grand Island, Neb., encouraging residents of the deep-red state to vote as if he were on the ballot.

Still, at least one Republican politician shared Newsom’s interpretation.

“As a Navy veteran, I served to protect Americans, not write off American cities as an acceptable price of war,” Jim Desmond, the Trump-endorsed Republican congressional nominee in a metro San Diego district, wrote on social media, adding that “no American family should ever be treated as collateral damage.”

White House response

White House communications director Steven Cheung pushed back on the criticism on X.

“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. America is safer because of the President. Iran has no nuclear, no navy, no air force, and no money,” he wrote.

It was unclear whether Trump’s comments were based on any intelligence, and it’s far from clear that Iran has anywhere near the capability for a missile attack on the U.S.

In March, Iran launched missiles toward Diego Garcia, an Indian Ocean island that is home to a strategic U.K.-U.S. military base.

The Associated Press reported at the time that Iran has a self-imposed limit on its ballistic missile program, limiting the range to 1,240 miles. Diego Garcia is well outside that range. U.S. officials, however, long have alleged that Iran’s space program could allow it to build intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Also in March, law enforcement agencies across California were warned that the Iran war could lead to a surprise drone attack. But sources told the Los Angeles Times there’s no credible intelligence to support it and officials said they did not take it seriously.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass in a statement called Trump’s remarks “dangerous,” saying they could “potentially compromise our safety.”

“The role of a president is to protect the country, not to actively threaten it and encourage attacks on American lives,” she said.

Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., also criticized Trump for his comments on Monday evening, writing on X, “The President says the Iran war will end ‘very soon.’ How many times have we heard that promise? And if it means attacks on two major American cities in the process, he is not troubled by the cost.”

Democrat Xavier Becerra, the gubernatorial front-runner who spent decades representing the Los Angeles area in Congress, said on X, “Thirteen million Californians call LA and San Diego counties home. Their lives are not a ‘small price to pay’ or a punchline for Donald Trump.”

This report contains information from the Associated Press.