Senator Doug Jones drew comparisons on Wednesday between the 1963 church bombing that killed four black girls in Birmingham to the pipe bomb threats that targeted several prominent Democrats this week.

“I can tell you that there was a bomb that exploded in Birmingham in 1963 that killed four girls because (former public safety commissioner) Bull Connor and (former Governor) George Wallace said things that empowered them,” said Jones, who as a federal attorney, prosecuted two of the four KKK members responsible for the bombing in the early 2000s.

“None of those folks meant to do something like that,” Jones said about Connor and Wallace. “But words mean something. We need to be talking about positive things, not hateful things.”

Jones comments were directed at President Donald Trump on the same day that the president condemned attempted attacks on high-profile Democrats and CNN. Authorities, on Tuesday and Wednesday, intercepted pipe bombs targeting Hillary Clinton, former President Barack Obama, George Soros and others.

Trump called the packages “despicable” and urged the nation to come together 13 days before the hotly contested midterm elections will determine which political party controls Congress.

Asked about Trump’s remarks that he made at the White House, Jones replied: “What else is he supposed to say? But an after-the-fact something is, I won’t say that it rings hollow because I think he meant it. But the fact is that when he gets revved up at these political rallies, he needs to watch what he says.”

Jones was especially critical of Trump’s remarks at a recent rally in Montana, in which the president praised Republican Rep. Greg Gianforte, who pleaded guilty to assaulting a reporter, saying that “any guy that can do a body slam … he’s my guy.”

“We don’t need to encourage people and say great things about congressional people who beat up or slap a reporter or encourage someone to rough somebody up,” said Jones. “People in today’s world in social media can just take things the wrong way and take things too far. I think we, as public officials, need to be very conscious of that.”

Jones was in Fairhope stumping at a Baptist Church for Democrat Danielle Mashburn-Myrick, who is facing Republican Rep. Joe Faust in a closely-watched state House District 94 race on November 6.

“We are very conscious of security but there is nothing specific going on with us,” said Jones, regarding his own security.

He added, “This comes to show that everyone needs to sit back and take stock of who we are as people. Everyone is on edge right now.”