Donald Trump Says He'll Tell Supporters Not To Riot, 'But' ...

They're gonna be sooo mad.
Donald Trump can't stop flirting with political violence.
Donald Trump can't stop flirting with political violence.
AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin

WASHINGTON -- Donald Trump will tell his supporters not to riot if he's denied the Republican presidential nomination, but he suggested it could happen anyway.

ABC News host George Stephanopoulos had to ask three times to get Trump to say he'd tell his supporters not to riot if he's denied the nomination at the Republican National Convention this summer.

"I would certainly tell them that, but, you know, look, these people are -- are fervent," Trump said.

"I don't want to see riots. I don't want to see problems," Trump continued. "But, you know, you have -- you have millions of people who we're talking about, George, millions of additional people have gone. You know, I've gotten more than 2 million votes more than anybody else, 2 million votes, more than anybody else."

Trump first said there could be riots if someone else gets the nomination last week. "I think you’d have riots," he said. "I think you’d have riots. I’m representing a tremendous, many, many millions of people.”

Other Republicans, including House Speaker Paul Ryan (Wis.), condemned Trump's riot comment, coming as it did on the heels of violent clashes between Trump supporters and protesters at his rallies. "Nobody should say such things in my opinion because to even address or hint at violence is unacceptable," Ryan said.

The criticism hasn't stopped Trump from hinting at violence.

"I don't know what's going to happen," Trump said Sunday. "But I will say this, you're going to have a lot of very unhappy people."

Editor's note: Donald Trump regularly incites political violence and is a serial liar, rampant xenophobe, racist, misogynist and birther who has repeatedly pledged to ban all Muslims -- 1.6 billion members of an entire religion -- from entering the U.S.

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