Former President Trump on Thursday delivered his formal acceptance speech for the Republican presidential nomination, another step in an unprecedented campaign.
Here are some highlights from his remarks at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee:
A brief change of tone
Trump began his speech in a measured tone, reading from a teleprompter, something he once said should be illegal for presidential candidates. At first, that made a difference. The divisive Trump of his rallies and press conferences was replaced, at the start of his speech, by a unifying Trump.
“I'm running to be president of all of America, not half of America, because there is no victory in winning for half of America,” he said.
“Whether you are young or old, male or female, Democrat, Republican or independent, black or white, Asian or Hispanic, I extend to you a hand of loyalty and friendship,” he said at another point.
It didn't last.
Trump entered politics with false claims about then-President Obama’s birthplace (alleging that the first black president was born abroad) and rallied his supporters in the 2016 campaign with chants of “Lock her up!” against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
As president, Trump has almost always governed with his base in mind, lambasting “haters and losers,” including in Christmas tweets. His 2017 inaugural address painted a grim portrait of the “American carnage.”
As a candidate, he has continued to use foul language, calling immigrants “vermin” who are “poisoning” American blood and warning of a “bloodbath” for the auto industry if he is not elected.
As Thursday's speech progressed, the softer tone faded and he accused his opponents of cheating in the election (a baseless claim), said other countries were “sending their assassins to the United States of America” and said his opponents were creating “a planet of war.”
“It's actually too painful to tell”
Trump spoke for the first, and what he said would be the only, time about what happened when “the assassin’s bullet came within a quarter of an inch of taking my life” at last weekend’s rally in Pennsylvania.
He was “very lucky” because he was starting to turn his head and stopped before hearing “a loud whistling sound and I felt something hit me very, very hard in my right ear.”
“I said to myself, ‘Wow, what was that? It could only be a bullet. ’ And I put my right hand to my ear and pulled it down. My hand was covered in blood,” he said.
Trump praised the rally crowd for not fleeing the scene and the Secret Service agents, who have come under scrutiny for security lapses, for protecting him and killing the would-be assassin.
Crediting God for saving him, he said, “I shouldn't be here tonight.”
“Yes, you are!” the crowd shouted.
Trump then walked across the stage to a helmet and uniform bearing the name of Corey Comperatore, a retired firefighter who died in the attack, to pay his respects.
The moment was both shocking and a reminder of how important these events are playing in Trump's campaign. Speakers spoke about the tragedy throughout the four-day convention, often referring to Trump's survival as an act of divine intervention.
Targeting the 'Democratic Party'
President Biden and other Democrats are running in part on the idea that Trump is a threat to democracy, in large part because he incited an angry mob to storm the Capitol on January 6, 2021, and still refuses to accept the results of the 2020 election.
He is also the first criminal to win a major party nomination (he still faces additional charges) and has vowed to be a dictator on his first day and called for the suspension of the constitution.
But Trump now blames the Democratic Party for the disunity and continued to press that argument on Thursday.
“We must not criminalize or demonize political disagreement,” he said. “In that regard, the Democratic Party should immediately stop using the judicial system as a weapon and labeling its political opponent as an enemy of democracy.”
Promising mass deportations
“I call it an invasion,” Trump said, referring to illegal immigration.
Immigration is a top issue for Trump and his base. Some Republican delegates have held up signs reading “Mass Deportation Now!” Trump renewed his promise to implement the largest deportation operation in US history.
“Today, our cities are flooded with illegal immigrants,” he said. “Americans are being pushed out of the workforce.”
Unemployment is actually quite low, at 4.1%, but border apprehensions have reached record levels under the Biden administration.
“They come from prisons, from jails, from psychiatric institutions,” Trump said of the migrants.
Immigration is a top issue for many voters, but Trump's incendiary language could alienate moderates and give strength to Democrats. Research shows that immigrants are less likely to commit crimes than native-born Americans.
Political agenda: Biden reversed
Trump, as usual, did not detail his policies, but promised tax cuts, tariffs and “drill, drill, drill.”
Above all, he made clear that he wants to reverse many of Biden's policies, especially those aimed at pushing the country toward electric vehicles to prevent climate change.
“We will redirect that money to important projects like roads, bridges and dams, and not allow it to be spent on pointless green new ideas, and I will end the electric vehicle mandate on day one,” he said.
He also promised to alter nearly all of Biden's foreign policy, saying Russia would not have invaded Ukraine if he were president and that Hamas would not have attacked Israel.
