Trump has accepted the nomination for the Republican Party’s presidential nominee
Just five days after an attempt on his life, Donald Trump turned to the Republican National Convention with a headband on Thursday night to accept his party’s presidential nomination and deliver a speech aimed at uniting his party and the nation at large in support of his third consecutive bid to take the White House.
During his speech Thursday night, Donald Trump described how he miraculously survived an attempt on his life, telling a delighted audience at the Republican National Convention in his first speech since the attack that he was here “by the grace of Almighty God.”
“I heard a loud whooshing sound and I felt something hit me very, very hard on my right ear,” he said, speaking on stage in Milwaukee, with a bandage still covering his ear. – I said to myself, “Wow, what was that? That could only be a bullet.”
In response to the former president saying “I wasn’t supposed to be here,” the audience shouted back, “Yes, you’re supposed to be here!” Large screens at the back of the stage at that moment showed photos of a bloodied Trump. He praised the Secret Service agents who rushed to his aid and paid tribute to Pennsylvania resident Corey Comperatore, who was killed by a gunman’s bullet.
The former president took an unusually conciliatory stance in the first moments of his speech as he formally accepted the party’s nomination for president.
“I’m running for president for all of America, not half of America, because there’s no winning the election for half of America,” he said, a marked change from the former president’s usually bellicose tone.
However, Trump soon moved into his usual attacks on the Biden administration, claiming without evidence that his criminal charges were politically motivated attempts to prevent his election.
During his speech, Trump talked a lot about the economy. He stated that there was no inflation during his presidency, drawing a contrast between his administration and that of President Joe Biden, whose early years were marked by high rates of inflation.
In addition, he reiterated that during his administration he implemented the largest tax cut in U.S. history. “A great economy, the largest tax cut in history, the largest reduction in government regulation in history, building up the Space Force, rebuilding our Armed Forces. We’ve done a lot of things,” he said, pledging to cut taxes while reducing the federal debt, which exceeds $36 trillion.
Another issue of concern to many Americans is migration, and Trump didn’t skirt the issue in his speech.
“There is a crisis, and it’s happening right now – a massive invasion at our southern border that has caused misery, crime, poverty, disease and devastation in communities across our country. No one has ever seen anything like it,” he declared.
“I will end the illegal immigration crisis by closing our border and finishing the wall, much of which I have already built. On the wall, we dealt with a very difficult Congress, and I said: “It’s okay, we’re not going to go to Congress.” I call it an invasion. We’ve committed almost $800 billion dollars to our military. I said I’m going to take some of that money because it’s an invasion. The wall is already built, most of the wall is already built, and we built it with those funds. Because what else could be better than that? We have to stop the invasion of our country that kills hundreds of thousands of people a year. We’re not going to let that happen,” Trump stated.
The Republican candidate devoted part of his speech to foreign policy issues. The former president accused the current administration of creating “international crises,” to which he attributed “the terrible war with Russia and Ukraine, which would never have happened if I were president, and the war caused by the attack on Israel, which would never have happened if I were president.”
“Under President Trump, Russia has not seized anything,” Trump declared.
He recalled his administration’s fight against the “Islamic State” as well as talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, saying that “it’s good to get along with someone who has a lot of nuclear weapons.”
He also referred to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in his speech, calling him a “tough leader.” Last week, the former US president and the Hungarian prime minister met at Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s Florida residence.
Trump also criticized the actions of the US authorities during the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan in 2021.
“With the right leadership, all of the disasters that we are experiencing right now will be fixed, and very, very quickly. So tonight, whether you’ve supported me in the past or not, I hope you’ll support me in the future, because I’m going to bring back the American dream. That’s what we’re going to do. You don’t even hear about the American dream. It is with great humility that I ask you to rejoice in the future of our country,” Trump said.
The speech capped a four-day event at which fellow party members greeted him with adoration. According to Reuters, all Republicans now “seem to be completely under his influence.”
The 78-year-old former president, known for his willingness to criticize his political opponents in both parties, promised to offer a softer and more personal message of unity after surviving the assassination attempt.
Trump’s speech was the culmination and conclusion of an epic four-day Republican forum that drew thousands of conservative activists and elected officials in Wisconsin to Milwaukee, on the eve of an election now featuring two highly unpopular candidates. But with less than four months before the election, there could be significant changes in the race.
Trump’s performance comes at a time when 81-year-old President Joe Biden is still reeling from losing his party’s nomination, facing sustained pressure from key congressional allies, donors and even former President Barack Obama, who fear he may not win re-election after a disastrous debate.
Longtime allies have urged Biden to campaign harder, but instead he is in isolation at his Delaware beach house after being diagnosed with COVID-19.
While Trump, who often makes high-profile statements, sought a softer tone on Thursday night, the final day’s convention program was also geared toward a show of force, an indirect rebuke to Biden.
According to Reuters, Trump broke the record for the longest convention speech in history, lasting about an hour and a half. He already owns the 2016 record of 1 hour and 14 minutes.
Among the most prominent speakers on Thursday were celebrity wrestler Hulk Hogan, Ultimate Fighting Championship president Dana White and former Fox News host Tucker Carlson. American musician Robert Ritchey, better known by his alias Kid Rock, also took the stage.
Former first lady Melania Trump and Ivanka Trump, the president’s eldest daughter and former adviser, also appeared in the convention hall for the first time all week. Unlike in 2016 and 2020, Melania did not speak at the convention this time around.
Attorney Alina Habba, who has represented Trump in some of the legal cases against him, also spoke at the convention.