'Absolutely payback': Katrina Pierson claims Trump 'actually gains' power by attacking John Lewis

Former Trump campaign spokesperson Katrina Pierson on Sunday accused Democrats and Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) of playing "the victim" after President-elect Donald Trump attacked the civil rights icon on Twitter.

Last week, Trump lashed out at Lewis for saying that Trump's presidency was not legitimate because of Russian interference in the election. In a tweet, Trump accused the civil rights hero of not taking "action" to help his district.

"He attacked Donald Trump!" Pierson told Fox News host Clayton Morris on Sunday. "And Donald Trump also has a First Amendment right to defend himself. So this criticism is not fair. And it's never supposed to be fair for Republicans because Republicans are supposed to sit down, shut up and be publicly humiliated and never defend themselves."

"And all that changed with Donald Trump entered the arena," she continued. "And he said several times, 'If you attack me, I will hit you back.' That's exactly what happened here. This is what Democrats do. They pick a fight and they play the victim."

Pierson insisted that Trump's attack on Lewis was "absolutely payback" for undermining his legitimacy.

"This doesn't hurt Donald Trump's political clout," Trump's former national spokesperson opined. "He actually gains, simply because he is someone who is standing up for himself."

"Hillary Clinton couldn't even fill a high school," she scoffed. "Beyonce and Jay Z couldn't even bring the types of crowds Donald Trump had all over this country. What [Democrats] are doing is they are besmirching the American public and these elections results."

Watch the video below from Fox News, broadcast Jan. 15, 2017.