Donald Trump: ‘If I were president Khizr Khan’s son wouldn’t have died’

“Him and I have [the] same equal rights”.

Trump suggested in an ABC News interview that Khan might have been barred from speaking during her appearance at the Democratic National Convention last week as she stood alongside her husband, Khizr Khan, who criticized the Republican nominee in his speech. Khan questioned whether Trump had read the Constitution. Ms. Khan later explained that she is still too emotionally despondent over the loss of her son 12 years ago to be able to speak about it in public.

To hear Collins tell it, the Khans’ actions made them fair game in the rough-and-tumble world of American politics. Trump on the program insisted that he has indeed “made a lot of sacrifices”.

“Whatever your nationality or your ethnic background or religion”, said Tony Dowell, who brought his children to Khan’s grave, “you can still be an American hero”.

They were reacting to the Republican presidential candidate’s insults which were aimed at the family of a Muslim soldier killed in Iraq. “There has to come a point at which you say, ‘Enough.’ The alternative is that the entire Republican Party effectively endorses and validates the positions being articulated by Mr. Trump”. “But the real blame here has to be on Hillary Clinton’s and John McCain’s reckless foreign policy” for bringing the United States into war.

Contacted for further comment from Collins Tuesday morning, his spokesman, Michael McAdams, said the congressman would be unavailable for the day.

Asked on CNN what message he could give Trump, Khizr Khan said he wanted to maintain his family’s dignity and convey to Trump “that a good leader has one trait… empathy”. Mr McCain said Cpt Khan’s name “will live forever in American -memory”, and personally thanked his parents for immigrating to America from Pakistan. “It’s not anything to do with the Muslim faith”.

McAuliffe, a long-time friend and political ally of Democratic presidential contender Hillary Clinton, said he hopes Democrats and Republicans in the state denounce Trump’s comments. “If it was up to Donald Trump, he never would have been in America”, he said about to his son.

Monday, when Trump fired another Twitter salvo, claiming he was viciously attacked by Khan, many more Republicans are coming to the defense of the Khans.

Trump also turned his rhetorical guns on the highest-ranking elected official in his own party, by tweeting out a positive message to House Speaker Paul Ryan’s GOP primary opponent.