Trump says US may have no choice but to leave over European migration
Donald Trump has condemned mass migration in Europe after riots in France and warned that the United States may have no choice but to leave if European leaders do not change course.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
Donald Trump has condemned mass migration in Europe after riots in France and warned that the United States could leave, in remarks read out and debated on a TV news programme.
In the comments, Trump described France as "a once great nation" that was being "conquered looted and burned to the ground by migrants jihadists and communists who hate christianity" and "frankly the western civilization itself". He accused "globalist left-wing politicians" of having "treasonously imported millions and millions of third world migrants" who are "totally incompatible with that west" and "despise everything about france". He added that the US stood with Europe "despise its flaws its weaknesses and hopefully its temporary loss of direction", but warned: "if they don't find their way soon we will have no choice but to leave."
The broadcast did not specify what the US would leave. The presenter asked whether Trump meant the EU, NATO or even the Earth, and said viewers were unsure. The remarks prompted a heated studio debate. One panellist called Trump "completely insane" and "absolutely revolting", and accused him of trying to distract from poor poll ratings, the midterms and his foreign policy. The same panellist disputed Trump's account of the French riots, saying they began with schoolchildren and then drew in students, teachers and parents, before "nasty people" became involved.
Another panellist said Trump was "absolute right" to warn about mass migration and argued that some migrants held cultural values "totally incompatible with the west". The discussion also touched on European defence spending, with agreement that countries including Britain should spend more, and on Trump's approach to Russia and Ukraine.
On screen
Stills are sampled automatically at 60-second intervals. Where shown, the still is the nearest available frame from the relevant broadcast segment and is included to show what was on screen during that part of the broadcast. A still may not correspond to the exact second of a quoted phrase.
Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.
| Claim |  |
|---|---|
| Only on one channel | |
| A panellist said the French riots began with schoolchildren and later involved students, teachers and parents. | |
| Trump said France was being overtaken by migrants, jihadists and communists. | |
| Trump warned that the US could be forced to leave Europe if conditions did not improve. | |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
The segment used Trump's remarks as the springboard for a noisy studio debate, with the presenter reading out his claims about France and pressing panellists on whether he was right. It gave space to both a strong defence of Trump's migration warning and a hostile reaction that called him insane and revolting. The discussion veered into defence spending, Ukraine and cultural symbols such as hijabs.
- “just look at what's happening in france a once great nation that is being conquered looted and burned to the ground by migrants jihadists and communists”
- “the man is completely insane”
- “i think he is absolute right to draw on reference that he said and there are plenty of migrants whose um cultural values are totally incompatible with the west”
Who was on air
People and organisations each channel put on air while covering this story. Channels' own presenters and reporters are not listed. Names as transcribed, and the list can miss people.
- 19:47 BST
Donald Trump, US president
Farage · Tue 20 Oct
Broadcast Timeline
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