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Donald Trump warned on Saturday that the upcoming election will be America’s last chance for salvation, as he returned to campaign rallies in New Hampshire and South Carolina, hoping to boost his White House bid.
Two and a half months after announcing his candidacy for the 2024 elections, the former president left the gilded halls of his Florida residence to make visits that owe nothing to chance. New Hampshire and South Carolina will be among the first to host Republican primaries in early 2024. A victory would give Trump a valuable and much-needed boost going forward.
“The 2024 election is our only chance to save our country and we need a leader who is ready to do it from day one,” Trump said in Columbia, South Carolina, flanked by American flags and some of his most loyal political allies. . “We need a leader who is prepared to face the forces sweeping across our country,” he had said earlier before a crowd of several hundred in the small town of Salem, New Hampshire.
– ‘Corrupt establishment’ –
But after reigning for years in the “Grand Old Party,” as the Republican Party is known, Trump (76) was not necessarily on conquered ground. In New Hampshire, a state bordering Canada, many local lawmakers blame the former president for ruining Republicans’ chances in last November’s midterm elections by backing candidates seen as radical.
“Personally, I think he has lost a lot of his appeal and his aura,” local lawmaker Mike Bordes, who supported Trump in the 2020 election, told AFP. Now, he says he is “ready… to consider other options” for the nomination of the Republican presidential candidate. Trump said again on Saturday that the 2020 elections were stolen from him as he did not spare derogatory nicknames for his rivals. He also touted his record on public safety and immigration, vowing to save the country “from destruction by a corrupt, radical and self-serving political establishment.”
– Setbacks –
Although he is so far the only Republican to announce his candidacy, in South Carolina several are getting ready to throw themselves into the electoral arena. Starting with former Governor Nikki Haley, who promised her followers an announcement very soon. In addition, several of Trump’s top donors have publicly announced that they will not support his candidacy and will instead support that of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a rising star in the Republican Party, who has also not officially launched the race.
Political setbacks for Trump, who is already the subject of several judicial investigations, which could be the biggest obstacle to his nomination. “These are radical left-wing prosecutors who are absolutely horrible people,” Trump said. Despite these setbacks, his supporters warn against a quick burial of Trump. His downfall was announced a thousand times, but until now he survived all the scandals.
It could also benefit from the upcoming lifting of the suspension of its Facebook and Instagram accounts, finding a sizeable megaphone there.
