Trump Warns America Will 'Burn' if Republicans Lose Midterms as He Points to Chaos Unfolding in France

Donald Trump has told American voters that the violent unrest sweeping France offers a glimpse of their own future if Republicans lose control of Congress next month. Speaking at a rally in Park City, Kansas, on Monday, the president urged supporters to 'look at what's happening in France' if they wanted to understand what was at stake on 3 November.

He then turned France's riots into a direct attack on his political opponents. 'When you see burning steeples and raging fires in France, just remember that is what the radical Dumocrats want to do to America,' Trump said.

He added: 'We're not going to let that happen to this country.' He has repeatedly used 'Dumocrats' to mock Democrats.

Trump Blames Migrants for France's Unrest

Trump described France as 'a once great nation' being 'conquered, looted and burned to the ground', placing the blame on migrants, extremists and left-wing politicians. 'This is what's happening to France,' he said. 'They want to happen to our country. It's never happening here.'

He also claimed to have warned the French president years ago. 'As I told President Macron, the president of France when I first met him many years ago, now close your border or you will lose France,' Trump said. His account of the conversation was not independently verified.

He offered no evidence that Democrats want violence or destruction in the United States. On Sunday, Trump had written 'France is burning!' on Truth Social, and on Monday he posted that France 'must CLOSE THE BORDERS, FAST!'. Vice President JD Vance said on X that the protests were 'the future congressional Democrats seek for your country'.

What Sparked the Chaos in France

French officials have not blamed immigrants for the unrest. President Emmanuel Macron blamed 'agitators from ultra-left fringe groups, joined by numerous delinquents'. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said many of those arrested had little to do with the student protests.

The protests began over school conditions and the rising cost of living, not immigration. High school students first took to the streets last month, and unions and farmers later joined them. More than half a million people took part in protests across France on Saturday, 17 October, and almost 2,400 were arrested, the French interior ministry said.

The worst damage included the burning of the 143-year-old town hall in Limoges, whose spire collapsed in flames. Protesters forced their way into Marseille's city hall, and a tourist office in Lyon was set on fire. Business losses are running into hundreds of millions of euros, and Economy Minister Roland Lescure has promised state support for business owners hit by the damage.

The unrest has piled pressure on France's minority government. A National Assembly vote on the tax side of the 2027 budget, originally due on Tuesday, has been pushed back to 27 October.

A Republican Seat Suddenly in Danger

Trump was in Kansas to campaign for Senator Roger Marshall, whose seat has long been held by Republicans but is now in danger of falling to Democrat Adam Hamilton. One Republican familiar with Trump's midterm strategy said that his focus on rural areas reflects internal polling showing soft support among rural men aged 55 and under, a group crucial to his 2024 win.

The national arithmetic is tight. Democrats need a net gain of four seats in both the House of Representatives and the Senate to overturn Republicans' narrow majorities of 218 to 214 and 53 to 47.

With less than two weeks until polling day, Trump leaned on immigration at the rally, while his own standing remains weak. A Reuters/Ipsos poll published on Monday found that only 31 per cent of Americans approve of his performance, a record low for him.

The unrest in France began over living costs and stretched public services, pressures that American households also face. Whether voters in Kansas and beyond respond to Trump's warnings about France, or to the economic worries that triggered those protests in the first place, could decide which party controls Congress for the final two years of his term.