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House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, DNY, repeated his harsh words to Republicans during a fiery news conference Monday, telling critics, “I don't care.”
“I stand by it,” Jeffries told reporters, when asked about his pledge last week to unleash “big battles” on the GOP to fight the party's redistricting efforts ahead of the November midterm elections. “You can keep criticizing me about it. I don't take your criticism lightly.”
Jeffries' messages sparked a backlash from Republicans following a third apparent assassination attempt on President Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner on Saturday.
A senior Democrat defended his choice of words by pointing to a New York Times report last year when an anonymous White House staffer used the same phrase to threaten Democrats.
Police and the National Guard stand in front of the Washington Hilton after the White House Correspondents Association Dinner was postponed April 25, 2026, in Washington, DC. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
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“That phrase 'big war everywhere, all the time' came from the White House in the summer of 2025, when they started this retrenchment war, and now they're really crazy,” Jeffries continued. “Why? Because the Democrats decided to end it. Get rid of it.”
The leader of the Democratic Alliance stressed that he condemns political violence in all its forms.
Jeffries also had harsh words for White House Secretary Caroline Leavitt, calling her a “disgrace” and a “cold-blooded liar” after criticizing Democrats' propaganda that often calls Trump an existential threat.
“This so-called White House press secretary wants to teach America and teach us about morality. Get rid of it,” said Jeffries. “Clean up your own house before you have anything to say to us in the language we use.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Democrat of New York, speaks at a news conference at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on November 10, 2025. (Aaron Schwartz/Bloomberg)
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Leavitt criticized senior Democrats' reception of hostile messages from Trump during a news conference Monday.
“This hateful, consistent and violent rhetoric directed at President Trump, every day for 11 years, has helped legitimize this violence and brought us to this dark moment,” Leavitt said.
“When you have mentally disturbed people all over the country listening to this crazy talk about the president every day, it encourages them to do crazy things,” he added.
The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) strongly criticized Jeffries' defense of his comments.
“Democrats are playing with fire and pretending they don't smell the smoke,” NRCC spokesman Mike Marinella said in a statement. “If they can't put an end to this kind of rhetoric, it proves that they will do anything to appease their far-left base.”
White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt attends a news conference in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, DC, April 25, 2026, after President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance were removed from the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner following a security incident. (Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images)
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Jeffries on Monday also blasted a new congressional map proposed by the Florida legislature expected to pass in the coming days aimed at erasing Democrats' gains in Virginia, where voters approved a gerrymander targeting four Republican-held seats last week.
“This so-called map, which is essentially a DeSantis dummymander, is unconstitutional,” Jeffries said. “Florida will make no discernible difference as it relates to their efforts to rig the midterm elections. That effort failed.”
