Why I am more convinced than ever that Trump has the strength and bravery to save Ukraine and end this appalling war
By BORIS JOHNSON (Former British PM)
It was the moment when Donald Trump won the November presidential election. I don’t mean the fateful decision to turn his head, which saved him from death by a quarter of an inch.
We are not talking about the miraculous fact of his survival, at 6.11pm in Butler, Pennsylvania, when tens of thousands of horror-stricken admirers saw him go down, with blood streaming from a head-wound whose significance was at first worryingly unclear.
No, the moment of truth, perhaps of revelation, came a few seconds later when the Secret Service agents were trying to bundle him horizontally — without his shoes — from the scene. It was then that Donald Trump showed his character.
He confirmed in a flash, not just his theatrical instincts, but also his courage. Having just been struck by a high-powered rifle bullet, he did not allow himself to be passively carted away. He took command of the situation. Wrestling himself free from his security people, flouting their safety protocols, he raised himself up until he was sure the crowd could see him.
Pumping his fist, he urged his supporters to ‘Fight, fight, fight’; and in so doing, at the moment when it really counted, he surely proved the most important fact of all: that he is made of the right stuff.
He knew that there was one thing far more important than his evacuation from the scene, and that was showing America that the assassin’s bullet had not prevailed against him — either physically or psychologically.
That photo, with the police officers arranged in what art historians would call ‘heroic diagonals’, and with Trump’s blood-streaked face and hand at the apex, has already become, in the minds of many Americans, the defining image of this campaign. That is because of the message it sends.
This is Trump saying to America and to the world, I will not be bowed, I will not be beaten.
More important still, that image says to Americans, with me as your leader, YOU will not be bowed. YOU will not be beaten. That is why the gesture has thrilled the hearts of his fans — and perhaps even some others.
I believe that indomitable spirit is exactly what the world needs right now, and exactly what is needed in the White House.
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Former President shows strength and humility at RNC acceptance speech
“I'm not supposed to be here tonight, not supposed to be here.”
That was former President Donald Trump’s assessment of the near-fatal assassination attempt against him on July 13 at his Butler, Pa. campaign rally, that it was a miracle he was still alive, as he accepted the Republican Party nomination on July 18 in Milwaukee, Wis.
As the crowd chanted, “Yes you are!” Trump insisted he should be dead: “But I'm not [supposed to be here] and I'll tell you. I stand before you in this arena only by the grace of Almighty God. In watching the reports over the last few days, many people say it was a providential moment. Probably was.”
At his first speech since his brush with death, Trump recounted that but for referring to a chart on illegal immigration, where he turned his head at the last second, and “if I had not moved my head at that very last instant, the assassin's bullet would have perfectly hit its mark and I would not be here tonight. We would not be together.”
Trump’s humble retelling carried over into the rest of the speech as he softened his attacks on President Joe Biden and offered a less partisan style speech, stating, “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.”
That set the mood for the remainder of Trump’s speech: This is a man on a mission to finish what he started when he began running for President the first time in 2015 and won the 2016 election against Hillary Clinton, overcoming incredible odds.
Illegal immigration has never been worse, with 8.1 million southwest border encounters since Biden took office in Jan. 2021, the most in American history over comparable time intervals. In part, it is that stat that explains Trump’s decision to run for office again, and it is definitely that stat that saved his life.
To address it, Trump says he will finish the border wall that began under his watch. He will reinstitute the Remain in Mexico policy that Biden ended. And he plans to undertake a massive deportation operation.
To garner international support for the policies, Trump promised to once again leverage economic aid and tariff threats against countries that do not cooperate with U.S. policies on trade, immigration and fighting the drug cartels.
On foreign policy, Trump once again warned not just his supporters by all Americans and indeed the entire world that we are on the brink of nuclear war: “our planet is teetering on the edge of World War III. And this will be a war like no other war because of weaponry. The weapons are no longer army tanks going back and forth shooting at each other. These weapons are obliteration. It's time for a change. This administration can't come close to solving the problems.”
On the campaign trail, Trump has supported pursuing a diplomatic strategy specific to Ukraine to achieve peace — if possible — and to avoid the worst as the war there continues to escalate.
Trump also threatened Hamas to return all American hostages currently being held before he returns to office or “the entire world, I tell you this, we want our hostages back, and they better be back before I assume office… or you will be paying a very big price.”
On the economy, Trump referenced inflation 14 times, and promised to reduce costs on food and energy by boosting production, and also with tax relief including no tax on tips, regulation cuts and lower interest rates. On the latter, interest rates might come down all on their own as the economy overheats, Americans max out their credit cards and prices cool, with the unemployment rate already rising, from a low of 3.4 percent in April 2023 now up to 4.1 percent in June.
A lot of the speech was largely boilerplate from Trump campaign rallies as the former president occasionally broke into adlibbing, but the overall moment was well-crafted, including a touching tribute to Corey Comperatore who lost his life at the Butler, Pa. rally while he was heroically shielding his family.
Following the assassination attempt, Trump’s rhetorical challenge was to meet that moment, to relate what happened to him and to show that he was okay, and that he was back. As the tempo of the speech shifted to more upbeat and animated in the second half as Trump really got into the swing of it, the American people were treated to a candidate who is fully able and motivated to lead the country he loves.
Trump showed strength.
At Butler, Pa., Trump told the assembled crowd to “Fight!” and in Milwaukee, Wis. he started to show how he intends to do that on the campaign trail with a message that can resonate not just with Republicans, but also independents and Democrats who might be on the fence. America’s leadership is currently weak, but Trump is strong — and America needs to be strong.
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Leftist desperation after the Trump shooting
Conservatives are calling for MSNBC anchor Joy Reid to be taken off the air after she shared inflammatory theories about the attempted assassination of Donald Trump.
Reid, 55, angered critics on two occasions after a gunman shot Trump in the ear, including sharing a video to X implying that he was not even shot at all.
And after President Biden tested positive for Covid days after the assassination attempt, Reid said on a broadcast that Biden's brush with the virus was as heroic as Trump's reaction to narrowly avoiding a bullet.
Conservative commentator Charlie Kirk led the criticisms of Reid's remarks, as he called on MSNBC to 'take Reid off the air' for her 'outrageous, insane, defamatory' theories.
She appeared to imply it was a staged event that allowed Trump to 'pose' for the iconic photo of him pumping his fist in the air - which Kirk said would mean Trump's 'campaign and the Secret Service colluded to kill two people in a fake assassination attempt just so Trump could have a photo op.'
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Whoopi Goldberg attacks Kai Trump's rousing RNC speech about grandfather Donald - urging viewers 'not to fall for it'
She is not in the best position to allege deception. She has adopted an Ashkenazi surname instead of her own much more mundane name. Does she really have any Jewish ancestry? The Ashkenazim are brilliant and heroic. She has no right to that name. She defiles it
And what is this about "humanizing" Trump? Is she saying that Trump is subhuman? In the light of history, that's not the wisest thing for a black to say
Whoopi Goldberg didn't hold back when sharing her thoughts about Kai Trump's Republican National Convention (RNC) speech, urging voters 'not to fall for it.'
Donald Trump's 17-year-old granddaughter took to the stage on Wednesday night, telling viewers he was 'just a normal grandpa.'
However the 68-year-old host of The View called out the teen's stirring speech; arguing it was a trick to 'humanize' Trump - particularly after Saturday's assassination attempt.
'I know his grandchild was up on the thing and they're trying to humanize [Trump] and change your idea about who this guy is,' Whoopi said on Thursday's episode of the ABC talk show.
'Don't fall for that.'
Kai, who is the daughter of Donald Trump Jr. and his ex-wife, Vanessa, took the stage on the third night of the RNC in Milwaukee.
'The media makes my grandpa seem like a different person, but I know him for who he is. He's very caring and loving, he truly wants the best for this country,' the teen said.
Kai, who is the eldest grandchild of Trump, described him as 'just a normal grandpa.'
'He gives us candy and soda when our parents are not looking,' she said.
'He always wants to know how we're doing in school. When I made the high honor roll, he printed it out to his friends how proud he was of me.'
She then commented on the Saturday's attempted assassination attempt in Pennsylvania, calling Trump an 'inspiration.'
‘A lot of people have put my grandpa through hell, and he's still standing,’ she told thousands of cheering GOP delegates. 'Grandpa, you are such an inspiration and I love you.'
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Also see my other blogs. Main ones below:
http://jonjayray.com/covidwatch.html (COVID WATCH)
http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)
http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)
http://pcwatch.blogspot.com (POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH)
http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)
http://snorphty.blogspot.com (TONGUE-TIED)
https://immigwatch.blogspot.com (IMMIGRATION WATCH)
http://jonjayray.com/short/short.html (Subject index to my blog posts)
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