Donald Trump gave a nearly two-hour speech, apparently the longest in American history, to conclude the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Thursday evening.
Following the rally shooting over the weekend, Trump said that he had rewritten his speech to focus on unity. It was also Trump’s first speech since he named Sen. JD Vance of Ohio as his running mate. And it came as the candidacy of his chief opponent, President Joe Biden, appeared to be on its last legs.
The first 15 minutes of Trump’s speech had a more serious tone as he recounted his experience from Saturday. He talked about unity and stated at one point I am the one saving democracy for the people of our country.”, but the rest of the more than 90-minute-long speech became thoroughly confusing, conflicting with some of his earlier points.
Here are 5 takeaways from Trump’s Thursday night address.
Trump Recounted His Assassination Attempt
Shortly after accepting the GOP nomination, Trump sporting the large bandage on his right ear that he’s had on throughout the 4-day convention spoke about the shooting at his Butler, Pennsylvania, rally on Saturday, saying this would be the last time he would recount the experience “because it’s actually too painful to tell.”
“I heard a loud whizzing sound and felt something hit me really, really hard on my right ear,” he said. “I said to myself, ‘Wow, what was that? It can only be a bullet,’ and moved my right hand to my ear, brought it down. My hand was covered with blood.”
“I stand before you in this arena only by the grace of Almighty God,” Trump continued, echoing the same idea of divine intervention that flowed freely from the stage during the convention. “I’m not supposed to be here tonight,” he said, with delegates responding with a chant of “Yes you are! Yes you are!”
The former president also paid tribute to Corey Comperatore, the 50-year-old firefighter who was killed at the rally when he tried to shield his family from the gunman.
“There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for others,” Trump said. He briefly stepped away from the podium to pose with Comperatore’s firefighter suit and kiss the late man’s helmet.
Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump embraces the firefighter uniform of Corey Comperatore as he speaks on stage on the fourth day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum. @olsongetty, @somogettynews pic.twitter.com/ljJA384rpD
— Getty Images News (@GettyImagesNews) July 19, 2024
Trump Declared He Will Be the One Upholding Democracy
“The discord and division in our society must be healed. As Americans, we are bound together by a single fate and a shared destiny,” he said. “I am running to be president for all of America, not half of America, because there is no victory in winning for half of America.”
It seemed at first that Trump was trying to embody a less partisan version of himself — still a giant personality, but one that uses his stature for the country’s benefit. Yet he quickly switched gears, declaring at one point that Democrats are “destroying our country.” He also continued to lie about the results of the 2020 election.
“We had that horrible, horrible result that we’ll never let happen again,” he said. “The election result, we’re never going to let that happen again.”
But regarding the swing state of Milwaukee, Trump wanted to be very honest about his intention to let his money do the talking: “Wisconsin, we are spending over $250 million here, creating jobs and other economic development all over the place…. I am trying to buy your vote, I’ll be honest about that,” he added.
News emerged that he had previously used the word “horrible” to describe the city. There were reports from The New York Times and ABC7 Chicago that he even planned to stay in Chicago, possibly at one of his own hotels, and commute to Milwaukee for his speech. His campaign later denied the reporting.
He Wasn’t As Giving When It Came To Details For His Possible Next Term
Trump made sweeping promises to end inflation and secure the border. He said “Republicans have a plan” to bring down energy prices “very, very rapidly.” He didn’t say what it is.
He said he’d “drill, baby, drill” and “reduce your taxes.” He suggested falsely that Democrats want to raise taxes “by four times” what they are now.
The most specific he got was promising to roll back Biden administration efforts to combat climate change, direct all infrastructure spending to “roads and bridges,” and impose steep tariffs.
Donald Trump tells the Republican National Convention (RNC) he will “end the illegal immigration crisis” in the US by closing the border and finishing the wall.
Read more: https://t.co/vgkPtCCZCa pic.twitter.com/48DX5Yz2VW
— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) July 19, 2024
He Leaned Into His Anti-Immigrant Rhetoric
“He’s going to formally grant a mass amnesty to millions of illegal aliens that came into our country,” he told the crowd, which responded with boos, speaking about Biden’s newly announced policy initiative to shield tens of thousands of undocumented immigrants living in the United States from deportation. “Under this program, illegals will be given immediate green cards and put on the fast track to rapid citizenship so they can vote.”
He added, “Our country is under invasion. We should not be talking amnesty. We should be talking about stopping the invasion instead.”
Trump Barely Mentioned Biden or Harris
Although many of his counterparts made targeted jokes at Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump himself barely acknowledged the Democratic incumbents. “I’m only going to say it one time,” he said, after mentioning Biden by name. At another point, he referred to him merely as “this person.”
“If you took the 10 worst presidents in the history of the United States — think of it, the 10 worst, added them up — they will not have done the damage that Biden has done,” Trump said. “Only gonna use the term once. Biden, I’m not going to use the name anymore. Just one time.”
The coverage of Trump’s speech on TV was rivaled by news of the potential exit of President Biden, as reports of the 81-year-old isolating in Delaware after testing positive for COVID loomed larger and larger.