A high-ranking BBC presenter from the UK has ignited a firestorm by suggesting President Biden should have Donald Trump murdered.
David Aaronovitch, who presents Radio 4's "Briefing Room" show, caused an uproar with a now-deleted X post reading, "If I was Biden, I'd hurry up and have Trump murdered on the basis that he is a threat to America's security."
He threw in the hashtag #SCOTUS ... tying his comment in response to the Supreme Court presidential immunity ruling.
The 6-3 ruling granted Trump immunity for any "official acts" during his presidency. However, the decision didn't clearly define what qualifies as an "official act" ... but it broadly considers everything a president does in the course of business.
Aaronovitch's comment was met with a ton of backlash ... with critics slamming it as a breach of his workplace's rules on employee impartiality.
There’s now a far right pile on suggesting that my tweet about the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity is an incitement to violence when it’s plainly a satire. So I’m deleting it. If nothing else though it’s given me a map of some the daftest people on this site.
— David Aaronovitch (@DAaronovitch) July 1, 2024
He wrote a follow-up X post, clearly frustrated by the reaction his initial comment received ... explaining he deleted it 'cause people interpreted it as inciting violence rather than seeing it purely as satire.
GB News contributor Alex Armstrong accused him of "backtracking" under advice from his "handlers." But, Aaronovitch remained steadfast and unapologetic about his comment, retorting, "Ooh Alex, tell me about my 'handlers'."
The BBC has yet to comment on Aaronovitch's post.