- U.S. President Donald Trump kicked off the four-day Republican National Convention on Monday with comments to Republicans formally backing his bid for a second term, ahead of the main event that will feature speeches by “everyday Americans.”
The following includes Trump’s speech in Charlotte, North Carolina, as well as prepared remarks selected and provided by the Republican Party in advance of the night’s events.
“The only way they can take this election away from us is if this is a rigged election. We’re going to win.”
“What they’re doing is using COVID to steal an election. They’re using COVID to defraud the American people - all of our people - of a fair and free election.”
TANYA WEINREIS, WHO OWNS A CHAIN OF COFFEE SHOPS IN MONTANA (in prepared remarks):
“I am so grateful that we have leaders like President Trump standing up for us who understand the good local business do in our neighborhoods and are not afraid to fight for us every day.”
HERSCHEL WALKER, FORMER HEISMAN TROPHY WINNER AND NFL RUNNING BACK (in prepared remarks):
“I watched him treat the janitors, security guards, and waiters the same way he would treat a VIP. He made them feel special because he knew they were. He understands that they are the people who make this country run.”
“It hurts my soul to hear the terrible names that people call Donald. The worst one is ‘racist.’ I take it as a personal insult that people would think I would have a 37-year friendship with a racist.”
ANDREW POLLACK, WHOSE DAUGHTER MEADOW WAS KILLED IN THE 2018 PARKLAND, FLORIDA, SCHOOL SHOOTING (in prepared remarks):
“I got to see who (President Trump) really is. He’s a good man and a great listener. And he cuts through the BS.”
MARK AND PATRICIA MCCLOSKEY, THE COUPLE WHO BRANDISHED GUNS AGAINST ANTI-RACISM PROTESTERS IN ST. LOUIS (in prepared remarks):
“Democrats no longer view the government’s job as protecting honest citizens from criminals, but rather protecting criminals from honest citizens.” “These are the policies that are coming to a neighborhood near you. So make no mistake: No matter where you live, your family will not be safe in the radical Democrats’ America.”