Donald Trump stated during his first campaign that he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue and not lose support.
Posted by The Bulwark Daily, Checked
- Sources
- 8 support2 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 95%
The Bulwark DailySep 29, 2026
Multiple independent outlets (Reuters, NBC, Politico, NPR, CNN, ABC) report Trump saying at a January 23, 2016 Sioux Center, Iowa rally, during his first presidential campaign, that he could stand on Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and not lose any voters.
The host relays this claim without endorsing it. It counts as passed on, not against the post.
What was said
… And he said that depressing part of this, I was thinking about us, about our people. It's just like, God, we can get to a point where you're jailed, and you're still like, you know, "I love this guy. He jailed me." Was this first campaign? I can go out on Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I won't lose an ounce of support. Like, he's aware of that, and I was asked by several, you know, diplomats from the EU, from Greece and Spain, about the Russian soul and why they love autocracy so much, you know, and I said, you know, the Russian soul is not different than other people are. …
The Bulwark Daily · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. Reuters, NBC News, Politico, NPR, CNN and ABC all quote Trump at a January 23, 2016 Iowa rally saying he could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and not lose any voters.[1][4][5][6][7][8]
Supports. Snopes reports the remark was widely reproduced accurately, and that it was part of a larger point about the loyalty of Trump's base, during his 2016 campaign for the Republican nomination.[2]
Supports. PolitiFact's review of 2016 political ads lists the Fifth Avenue remark as referring to the loyalty of his voters, corroborating the content and context.[3]
Context. Trump declined to clarify the remark when asked by CNN, and the AP/LA Times later reported it topped Yale's list of 2016 notable quotations.[7][9][10]
Sources
10 sources: 3 fact-checkers, 4 tier 2, 3 not rated
- 1Confident Trump says could 'shoot somebody' and not lose ...reuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 2Donald Trump 'Fifth Avenue' Commentsnopes.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 310 most aired political ads, fact-checked - PolitiFactpolitifact.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 4Trump Says He Could 'Shoot Somebody' and Still Maintain ...nbcnews.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 5Trump: I could 'shoot somebody' and I wouldn't lose voterspolitico.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 6Donald Trump: 'I Could ... Shoot Somebody, And I Wouldn't ... - NPRnpr.org · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 7Trump: I could ‘shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose voters’ | CNN Politicscnn.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports, context
- 8Donald Trump Jokes He Could 'Shoot Somebody' Without Losing ...abcnews.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 9Trump 'shoot someone' boast tops 2016 list of notable quotesboston.com · not rated · cited for: context
- 10Trump's boast that he could 'shoot somebody' tops Yale list of 2016's ...latimes.com · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- Donald Trump stated 'Let them bomb Los Angeles'True
- Donald Trump stated during the 2024 campaign that he would reduce gasoline prices to below $2 per gallon.True
- Donald Trump stated that he would not pursue legal action against the Clintons.Mixed
- Donald Trump stated he wanted Los Angeles and San Diego bombed.Mixed
- Donald Trump has been shot at.True