ST. LOUIS (KTRS) A Missouri lawmaker says she posted and then deleted a comment on Facebook that said she hoped for President Donald Trump’s assassination. Missouri Democratic Party leaders, including U-S Senator Claire McCaskill are now calling for her to resign from the legislature, and the U.SSecret Service is looking into her comment.
Democratic Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal says she didn’t mean what she posted Thursday, but that she was frustrated with the president’s reaction to the violence last weekend in Charlottesville, VA.
Chappelle-Nadal says she was reacting to concerns expressed by her constituents about Trump’s response to a white supremacist rally in the Virginia college town.
In addition to Senator McCaskill, other Democratic leaders calling for her resignation are state Democratic Party Chairman Stephen Webber, who says her the comments were “indefensible” and the party wouldn’t tolerate calls for the assassination of a president. Missouri Congressman William Lacy Clay says Chappelle-Nadal “has repeatedly demeaned her office and she is an embarrassment to the state,” and that calling for the president’s assassination “is a federal crime.” Other state Democratic leaders calling for Chappelle-Nadal to step down include House Democratic Caucus Chair Gina Walsh and State Representative Josh Peters.