Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes is investigating comments by former President Donald Trump wondering how former U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney would feel if guns were "trained on her face" as a potentially prosecutable offense.

"I have already asked my criminal division chief to start looking at that statement, analyzing it for whether it qualifies as a death threat under Arizona's laws," Mayes, a Democrat, said during the Friday taping of the Channel 12 news show "Sunday Square-Off," according to 12 News.

"I'm not prepared now to say whether it was or it wasn't, but it is not helpful as we prepare for our election and as we try to make sure that we keep the peace at our polling places and in our state," she said.

Richie Taylor, Mayes' spokesperson, told The Arizona Republic the office is looking into whether "Trump's comments about Liz Cheney violated Arizona law." He added the office has no other comment for now.

Trump campaign National Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Friday that Mayes' investigation of the comments "is just a desperate attempt to help out Kamala Harris' failed campaign."

Trump made the comment while disparaging Cheney, a harsh critic of the former president, in an appearance with conservative pundit Tucker Carlson Thursday at Glendale's Desert Diamond Arena. It's drawn strong pushback from Cheney, Vice President Kamala Harris and others.

Claiming Cheney's a "radical warhawk" who would send Americans to war, Trump remarked at the event: "Let's put her with a rifle standing there with nine barrels shooting at her. OK? Let’s see how she feels about it. You know, when the guns are trained on her face.”

"This is how dictators destroy free nations," Cheney said on X.com Friday about Trump's comments. "They threaten those who speak against them with death. We cannot entrust our country and our freedom to a petty, vindictive, cruel, unstable man who wants to be a tyrant."

It's unclear what the "nine barrels" might reference. Some, including Harris, suggested Trump had implied he wanted to see Cheney executed by a "firing squad."

"Donald Trump sat down with Tucker Carlson in a late-night town hall where he suggested that Republican Liz Cheney should face a firing squad," Harris' campaign said Friday morning.

Trump's statement that Cheney would have "a rifle standing there" came in framing his apparent point about her being a "war hawk." After the violent imagery, Trump continued saying to Carlson: "They're all war hawks when they're sitting in Washington in a nice building saying 'Oh gee, we'll, let's send 10,000 troops right into the mouth of the enemy.'"

Trump emphasized his meaning on the comment Friday, telling reporters Cheney "kills people... She wants to go kill people unnecessarily."

Mayes has faced criticism by Republicans for politicizing enforcement actions by her office, particularly with the state indictments of 18 people in the fake elector case related to the 2020 election.

That investigation deemed Trump an unindicted conspirator. Prosecutors asked the grand jury to back off after jurors considered indicting him.

Reach the reporter at rstern@arizonarepublic.com or 480-276-3237. Follow him on X@raystern.