Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said MAGA followers need deprogramming, referring to them as "cult members" in controversial remarks aired on television in response to supporters of former President Donald Trump.

Clinton shared the controversial remarks during a CNN "Primetime" interview on Thursday.

2016 loser @HillaryClinton calls for a “formal deprogramming of the [MAGA] cult members.”

Maybe smash their phones w/ hammers and wipe their brains w/ BleachBit? pic.twitter.com/tODo0MtJqA

— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) October 6, 2023

The comments

"Sadly, so many of those extremists, those MAGA extremists, take their marching orders from Donald Trump, who has no credibility left by any measure. He’s only in it for himself. He’s now defending himself in civil actions and criminal actions," Clinton said.

"When do they break with him? You know, because at some point, you know, maybe there needs to be a formal deprogramming of the cult members. But something needs to happen," she added.

Hillary Clinton floats 'formal deprogramming' of Trump supporters, suggests GOP base is made of bigots https://t.co/0MbOvG8EiY

— Fox News (@FoxNews) October 6, 2023

'Like a cult'

"So it is like a cult and somebody has to break that momentum. And that's why I believe Joe Biden will defeat them and hopefully then that will be the end and the fever will break," Clinton also stated during the interview.

"And then Republicans can try to get back to fighting about issues among themselves and electing people who are least, you know, responsible and accountable," she continued.

It's really not a stretch to imagine the Democrats rounding all of us up and sending us to the re-education camps. #MrsBillClinton https://t.co/USgOuP73JE

— toddstarnes (@toddstarnes) October 6, 2023

"Her Soviet-style suggestion came one day after Newsweek published a report alleging the FBI was targeting Trump supporters," conservative commentator Todd Starnes noted.

"It's really not a stretch to imagine the Democrats rounding all of us up and sending us to the re-education camps," he wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

The extreme description and suggestions for Trump supporters comes as the former president continues to hold a large lead over GOP candidates and has started to pass President Joe Biden in some national polls.

The battle will likely set up a rematch of the 2020 battle that is expected to come down to results in a handful of battleground states that were the source of controversy during the last election.

The fiery words from Clinton will unlikely change the minds of Trump supporters but will instead serve as fuel for his surging campaign to remove Democrats from power in the White House.