NBC correspondent shreds Trump's nonsensical treason rant

On Thursday, President Donald Trump rattled off a long list of people he believes to be guilty of treason, including former FBI lawyer Lisa Page, former FBI agent Peter Strzok, former FBI director James Comey and former acting FBI director Andrew McCabe.

Critics were quick to point out that Trump has a dangerously misguided idea of treason.

On Friday, NBC correspondent Pete Williams denounced the president for casually accusing people of a crime officially punishable by death.

"First of all, it applies against the United States, not someone running for president," said Williams.

"Donald Trump, when he was running for president, he was a private citizen. So nobody can commit treason against a private citizen. It’s impossible," he continued.

"Secondly, it means more than just being disloyal. It’s a totally different thing. It means leveling war with a designated enemy against the United States," he added. "Julian and Ethel Rosenberg who were convicted and put to death for giving away atomic energy secrets. They couldn’t get charged with treason because at the moment Russia wasn’t a designated enemy of the United States," he said.

"That’s why it doesn’t apply to political disputes or even somebody trying to undercut a presidential campaign if, indeed, that’s what really happened."

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