Ossoff slams Trump, targets Collins at Rome campaign stop

ROME, Ga. - Georgia Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff rallied supporters at a campaign stop in Rome on Friday, unleashing harsh criticism against President Trump’s latest claims of widespread voter fraud and targeting his midterm opponent, Rep. Mike Collins, over controversial national news reports. 

Rejecting Trump's claims

What they're saying:

During his Friday campaign stop, Ossoff offered a swift and biting response to President Trump's Thursday night address to the nation. In that speech, Trump claimed to hold declassified proof that the People's Republic of China hacked the election data of more than 200 million American voters just a week before the midterms, calling it the largest data compromise in history. Trump also accused U.S. intelligence agencies of a cover-up and demanded the immediate passage of the SAVE America Act—a strict citizenship voting law that Democrats argue suppresses the vote.

Ossoff sharply rejected the claims, labeling the national address a deeply troubling presidential display.

"I thought it was a really disappointing presidential display, a failure of leadership, and that he would try to sow distrust in American elections," Ossoff told the crowd.

Warning of 'unconstitutional' federal power

The backstory:

Ahead of Thursday's address from the White House, there was widespread speculation that Trump would specifically drag Georgia's 2020 election back into the spotlight to target Ossoff and Sen. Raphael Warnock. While that direct attack did not materialize in the speech, Ossoff emphasized that the president's heavy rhetoric is still intentionally firing up voters and undermining the democratic process.

Ossoff warned that the true danger lies in what the speech signaled for the future of voting rights across the country.

"What we also saw last night was a clear signal of this president’s intent to unconstitutionally wield federal power to attack this election and to undermine voting rights," Ossoff stated.

Ossoff targets Collins

The political temperature on the trail continues to rise as Ossoff also leveraged his platform to attack his opponent, Collins. Ossoff brought up a national news report alleging that Collins' son-in-law has reported ties to white nationalism.

The other side:

FOX 5 reached out to the Collins campaign for a response. A campaign spokesperson issued a written statement firmly denying any alignment with hate groups and standing on the congressman's legislative record.

"Representative Collins has always condemned all forms of anti-Semitism, including this and always will, regardless of source," the statement read. "Collins' lifelong support for Israel and the Jewish people is guided by his personal beliefs and backed by his consistent voting record in Congress."