Former US President Donald Trump has accepted the Republican nomination to run for the White House in November
Former US President Donald Trump laid out the case to “Make America Great Once Again” in a speech accepting his nomination at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
Thursday’s address was Trump’s first public appearance since last Saturday’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, where he narrowly escaped an assassination attempt. The former president took the stage on the final day of the RNC to share his vision for the future of the United States, in a speech he completely rewrote following the shooting.
Trump had initially prepared “an extremely tough speech… all about the corrupt” administration of President Joe Biden, but “threw it away” after the assassination attempt. “This is a chance to bring the whole country, even the whole world, together,” he explained in an interview with the New York Post on Sunday.
”In this moment, it is more important than ever that we stand united and show our true character as Americans, remaining strong and determined, and not allowing evil to win,” Trump added in a social media post on Sunday after the shooting. “We will FEAR NOT, but instead remain resilient in our faith and defiant in the face of wickedness.”
Trump’s running mate, Ohio Senator J.D. Vance, addressed the RNC the night before, officially accepting the vice-presidential nomination. During the half-hour speech, the lawmaker and Marine Corps veteran criticized Biden for backing trade deals that “destroyed” American manufacturing jobs and supporting the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, promising that a second Trump administration would only send American troops to war when absolutely necessary.