Quote:Representative Maxine Waters (D-CA) said Sunday on MSNBC’s “Velshi” denied she glorified or encouraged violence against Republicans.

In a video clip, waters said, “Let’s make sure we show up wherever we have to show up, and if you see anybody from that Cabinet in a restaurant, in a department store, at a gasoline station, you get out, and you create a crowd, and you push back on them. You tell them that they’re not welcome anymore anywhere! We’ve got to get the children connected to their parents. The children are suffering.”

Anchor Ali Velshi said, “I was able to play that clip that you were referring to from June 23rd, 2018, where you’re asking people to confront Republicans at department stores, gas stations, and restaurants and tell them they’re not welcome. That’s the stuff that Donald Trump’s attorneys say proves that you and others are doing the same thing Donald Trump was doing on January 6th and in the days before that. What’s the difference?”

Waters said, “They’re going to try it, but nothing any Democrat that I know of have ever said or acted in the way the president of the United States has acted. People must realize this president was out to destroy our democracy if he could not be president. He sent those people, those domestic terrorists, to the Capitol to take over the Capitol. Even they are saying so. They’re saying they were invited by the president. The president was rallying them right before they went. He told them to be tough. He told them to take back their government. And so nothing equals that.”

She continued, “Yes, I defended those poor children in cages that the Trump administration has left there separated from their parents. There was a movement at the time where restaurants were denying members of his administration of his cabinet and saying you guys should speak up for the children. And so that does not in any way equal what this president has said and what he has done. As a matter of fact, the Republicans should be afraid not only about the destruction of our democracy, but if they continue to support him and allow themselves to be guided by him, they’re going to have to live with a president that dictates to them every vote they can take, every vote they cannot take, he’s going to be in their primaries, they will be owned by this dishonorable human being. If that’s how they want to live, if they would rather be owned by the president who in fact tried to destroy our democracy in order to stay in office, then they don’t deserve to be elected. So no matter what he says about me or Nancy Pelosi, Cory Booker, or anybody they’re going to point to, it won’t work. It won’t work at all because nothing matches the way this president has tried to destroy this democracy.”

Velshi said, “So let me ask you because this is what they’re going to say. Can you say that you have not glorified or encouraged violence against Republicans?”

Waters said, “Absolutely, I can say it. As a matter of fact, if you look at the words that I used, the strongest thing I was was to tell them they’re not welcome, talk to them, tell them they’re not welcome. I didn’t say go and fight. I didn’t say anybody was going to have any violence. So they can’t make that statement.”