Donald Trump is officially the presidential candidate, JD Vance his deputy – now the Republican election campaign can really get started. Former competitors are providing support.
Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis, once bitter political opponents of Donald Trump, demonstratively supported the presidential candidate at the Republican Party Convention and called for unity. “Donald Trump has my full support,” said Haley.
She was greeted with a mixture of cheers and boos – but the audience applauded euphorically when Haley backed Trump right at the beginning. With the support of their former top rivals, the Republicans are increasingly closing ranks – in contrast to the Democrats, where there is an internal revolt against the front-runner Joe Biden.
Trump personally listened to the speeches of his former rival at the party convention. The 78-year-old wore a white bandage on his right ear again after the attack at the weekend. He appeared much fitter on the second day of the party spectacle than on the first, raising his fist several times and pointing his finger at the cheering crowd. The crowd crowded in front of the stands to get a close-up look.
For Trump, the demonstrative public support of his former rivals at the party convention is a great success. Both DeSantis and Haley had already announced their support. However, their appearance at the party convention in Milwaukee is likely to send a special signal – as a sign of new unity in the party, after there had also been fierce internal struggles there in recent months.
“We have a country to save”
Haley addressed Trump skeptics in her speech. “We should recognize that there are some Americans who do not agree 100 percent with Donald Trump. I happen to know some of them, and I want to speak to them tonight,” she said. She is one of them, said the former governor of the US state of South Carolina. But she emphasized: “I am here tonight because we have a country to save, and a united Republican Party is essential to saving it.”
Trump’s former US ambassador to the United Nations had been battling with Trump for weeks in the Republican primary for the presidential nomination, but had no chance and finally admitted defeat. Immediately after her withdrawal, Haley initially demonstratively refrained from expressing her support for Trump.
During the primary campaign, Haley questioned Trump’s mental suitability for the presidency. Trump, in turn, made racist comments against the daughter of Indian immigrants. The relationship between Trump and Haley was considered so bad that the Democratic US President Biden sought her support after Haley’s withdrawal and praised her courage in standing up against Trump. Parallel to Haley’s appearance, Biden’s campaign team mockingly pointed out that the 52-year-old had previously deemed Trump unsuitable for the highest office in the state.
The criticism from back then was far away during her appearance. Instead, Haley even praised Trump’s foreign policy. Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin did not attack Ukraine during Trump’s presidency because he knew that the Republican was strong, she shouted to the crowd. During the primary campaign, she had accused Trump of being particularly close to Putin or North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un.
“Let’s send Joe Biden back to his basement”
DeSantis also had his party’s presidential nomination in mind, but had already dropped out of the race after the Iowa caucuses in January. Unlike Haley, he immediately expressed his support for Trump. But the relationship between Trump and the Florida governor was still considered strained – they had also fiercely attacked each other during the primary campaign. “Let’s send Joe Biden back to his basement and Donald Trump back to the White House,” DeSantis said to great cheers in Milwaukee.
At the convention, it became particularly clear once again how much control Trump has over the entire party. “Everyone is rallying around the same person. It is very reassuring to see this unity,” said delegate Bill Swenson from the state of Nebraska.
Trump was officially named his party’s presidential candidate on Monday at the beginning of the party convention and, as things stand, will run against the Democratic incumbent Biden in the presidential election in November. Trump’s nomination was a formality; Trump had already won the necessary delegate votes in the primaries. He will give his big speech in Germany on Friday night.
“Trump Vance” signs already in use
Trump is running with Senator and bestselling author JD Vance as his vice presidential candidate. The 39-year-old was cheered in Milwaukee. As he entered the hall, the country song “America First” was playing. People held up signs reading “Trump – Vance”. Trump loyalist and agitator Vance is said to get on particularly well with Trump’s son Don Jr. During a stage rehearsal, the two joked together in a friendly manner. Trump’s wife Melania and daughter Ivanka, on the other hand, have not yet appeared in public.
The former president was injured in the ear in an assassination attempt at a campaign event at the weekend. One Trump supporter was killed and two others were injured. The shooter was shot dead. The incident was an escalation in the already heated US election campaign.
Chaos among the Democrats
While Republicans are demonstrating unity in Milwaukee, trouble is brewing ahead of the Democratic Party’s nominating convention in August. In the midst of the discussion about Biden’s age and fitness, the leadership of his party is pushing ahead with plans to virtually nominate the 81-year-old as presidential candidate before the party convention in Chicago. Democrats in Congress are criticizing this approach. Biden is currently under massive pressure from his own ranks due to regular lapses and embarrassing blunders. Various party colleagues have called on him to withdraw from the presidential race in recent weeks.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
