Legendary Watergate journalist Carl Bernstein labeled former President Donald Trump an “American war criminal” on Sunday, citing recent reporting that top generals feared Trump would stage a coup after losing last November’s election. During an appearance on CNN’s Reliable Sources, Bernstein said Trump’s continued push of the “Big Lie” that the election was stolen was a “delusional madness” that we’ve never experienced from any other president in history.

“I think we need to calmly step back and maybe look at Trump in a different context. He is our own American war criminal of a kind we’ve never experienced before,” Bernstein declared, prompting a stunned Brian Stelter to ask if he meant what he said. “I did,” Bernstein confirmed, adding that Trump’s “homicidal negligence” during the pandemic was another factor.

Bernstein then noted that Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley reportedly compared Trump’s rhetoric to that of Adolf Hitler and was concerned that Trump’s baseless claims of election fraud would lead to a potential “Reichstag moment.” Stelter, meanwhile, told Bernstein he was “going to get heat” for accusing Trump of war crimes.

“All I’m doing is saying, ‘Whoa, let’s look at Trump’s crimes in a different context.’ Yes, war crimes. These were crimes against our people,” Bernstein responded.