Donald Trump's suggestion that the United States disregard rules and regulations including "those found in the Constitution" drew scathing rebukes from politicians of both parties, with a top Democrat calling it "a danger to our democracy."
What many saw as a bizarre proposal from a singularly unconventional former president came in his latest social media post hammering away at baseless conspiracy theories about the 2020 election, which he lost to Joe Biden.
Given what he claimed was "massive and widespread fraud and deception" involving technology companies and the Democratic Party, "do you throw the Presidential Election Results of 2020 OUT and declare the RIGHTFUL WINNER, or do you have a NEW ELECTION?
"A Massive Fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution," he said on his Truth Social platform.
Even by Mr Trump's unorthodox standards, the suggestion of ignoring the Constitutional standards that form the foundation of the American political system was stunning.
"Attacking the Constitution and all it stands for is anathema to the soul of our nation and should be universally condemned," said a White House statement, adding, "You cannot only love America when you win."
'He's out of control'
Politicians of both parties took to Twitter to express their agreement.
"He’s calling for an end to America’s constitutional democracy," Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer said. "He’s out of control and a danger to our democracy."
Congressman Ted Lieu, a Democrat of California, called Mr Trump's proposal "anti-American and fascist."
And Representative Don Beyer, a Virginia Democrat, said Mr Trump had "openly declared himself an enemy of the Constitution, and Republicans must repudiate him."
Some did.
Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, one of a few Republicans to vote to impeach Mr Trump for inciting the 6 January, 2021 attack on the US Capitol, said that now "not a single conservative can legitimately support him," adding, "This is insane."
And John Bolton, who served as national security advisor to Mr Trump before the two fell out, said that "all real conservatives must oppose his 2024 campaign for president."
'Clear and present danger'
Mr Trump's Truth Social post came a day after Elon Musk — who as the new owner of Twitter had reinstated Mr Trump's banned account on the platform — released internal correspondence showing how company staff interacted with Democrats and others in the runup to the 2020 election.
Conservatives had accused Twitter of suppressing stories critical of Mr Biden's son Hunter Biden.
But there was "no smoking gun showing that the tech giant had bent to the will of Democrats," said the Washington Post.
The former president has suffered a series of setbacks, starting with the poor showing of several candidates he had endorsed in the November midterm elections.
And Mr Trump drew angry, bipartisan criticism after in Florida.
There were legal setbacks as well: the Supreme Court ruled that Mr Trump must turn over past tax returns to a House committee, and an appeals court halted a third-party review of classified documents seized from Mar-a-Lago.
