FACT CHECK: No, Donald Trump Did Not Say He Has Read ‘Mein Kampf’
A post shared on X, formerly Twitter, claims former President Donald Trump made a statement about his respect for Adolf Hitler and his manifesto “Mein Kampf.”
He actually believes this! He is dangerous to democracy… pic.twitter.com/zPFY9HrSQe
— “Veteran Cosmic Rocker”➖✌🏼💫🎸 ☮️🌎✨🇲🇽🇺🇸 (@betosando) November 24, 2023
Verdict: False
There is no evidence that Trump said this. He recently publicly announced that he has never read Mein Kampf.
Fact Check:
Trump recently made comments saying that immigrants crossing the southern border are “poisoning the blood,” according to AP News. Vice President Kamala Harris criticized Trump for the comments, saying he has been rightfully compared to dictators such as Hitler, USA Today reported.
The X post purports Trump said kind words about “Mein Kampf.” The X post shares an image of a black and white headshot of Trump alongside a purported quote he gave in a 2002 Time Magazine interview.
“Reading Mein Kampf in college had a profound affect (sic) on me. Very, very interesting. Of course there were many problems in Germany at the time, they were losers, they lost,” the alleged statement reads in part. “But Adolf Hitler, that is to say, I don’t agree with everything he was saying at the time of course but I do respect him.” He also purportedly said he tries to incorporate Hitler’s ideology into his life.
The claim is inaccurate. There are no credible news reports to suggest Trump made a statement about reading “Mein Kampf.” Instead, Trump recently stated publicly that he has not read the manifesto in response to the Biden administration accusing him of sounding like Hitler for saying immigrants are “poisoning the blood of our country,” according to NBC News. (RELATED: No, Donald Trump Did Not Say Lemonade Is Killing People Under The Biden Administration)
There are no matching search results on Time’s website to match the content of the alleged interview.
Check Your Fact has reached out to spokespeople for Trump and Time Magazine for comment and will update this piece accordingly if one is received from either source.
