Trump warns 2024 election 'our one shot' to save America

Donald Trump warned Saturday that the next election would be America's last chance for salvation as he attempted to revive a faltering third run for the White House in two US states that launched his winning 2016 presidential campaign. Buffeted by political and legal headwinds, the 76-year-old Republican addressed a few hundred supporters at an intimate rally in South Carolina's capital Columbia after speaking to grassroots activists in Salem, New Hampshire. "The 2024 election is our one shot to save our country and we need a leader who's ready to do that on day one," Trump said from a podium beneath the Statehouse rotunda, flanked by American flags and some of his most loyal political allies. The events were seen as a chance to revitalize a stuttering campaign amid criticism over Trump's failure to make any public appearances since he announced his latest run in November. But there was no discernible shift in his messaging as he launched into his debunked claims of a stolen 2020 election and reprised his litany of disparaging nicknames for his political rivals. He touched on favorite culture war talking points, railing against critical race theory that he said was being taught in the military as well as gender ideology and windmills that he said were mainly Chinese-made bird-killers. "There's only one president who has ever challenged the entire establishment in Washington, and with your vote next year, we will do it again," he said seeking to revive his 2016 image as an insurgent outsider. His most divisive remarks were reserved for the conservative critics he refers to as "RINOs" -- Republicans in name only -- whom he criticized at both events, arguing in New Hampshire that they were "even more dangerous than Democrats." During his address to party activists in Salem he had touted his record on law and order, immigration and "rebuilding" the US military as he vowed to save the country from "being destroyed by a selfish, radical, corrupt political establishment." "I'm more angry now and more committed now than I ever was," Trump said. "We need a president who's ready to hit the ground running on day one." - 'Horrible, horrible people' - New Hampshire and South Carolina hold outsize influence as two of the first states in every presidential election year to hold nominating contests. They cemented Trump's frontrunner status in 2016 after a lukewarm start in Iowa. But he has reportedly struggled to hold together a support base in South Carolina amid simmering discontent over his endorsements of candidates who lost swing state races in November's midterms. The nomination could wind up a two-horse race between Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who came out on top in a straw poll at the National Pro-Life Summit in Washington just last weekend. The biggest roadblock on Trump's path to the nomination may end up being his mounting legal woes, with a quasi-independent "special counsel" appointed to look into numerous allegations of misconduct. "These are radical left-wing prosecutors who are absolutely horrible, horrible people," Trump said in New Hampshire, vowing to investigate the Justice Department if he is reelected. He is under the spotlight over his handling of classified documents found in an FBI raid of his beachfront mansion in Florida, his role in the 2021 insurrection and, in Georgia, his attempts to overturn his 2020 election defeat. "We need a fighter who can stand up to the left, who can stand up to the swamp, stand up to the media, stand up to the deep state... to stand up to the globalists and China, and stand up for America," he said in South Carolina. "And that's what we do, we stand up for America."

Trump warns 2024 election 'our one shot' to save America

DISCOVER MORE

U.S. drillers add oil and gas rigs for second week in a row - Baker Hughes

U.S. rejects JetBlue, Spirit exemption request, citing lawsuit

US Justice Dept's Google advertising case gets fast-paced schedule

Canada, US amend decades-old pact after surge in irregular asylum seekers

Rhetoric over US debt limit boils over as Republicans, Democrats joust

Real estate leader on NY Fed board warns on commercial real estate risks

Biden said federal deposit insurance could be tapped further if banks fail

Trump warns of 'death & destruction' if charged with a crime

UAE exchange firm Al Ansari upsizes IPO on strong investor demand

Dubai's Emirates expands training fleet with $4.3mln aircraft order

2 African development banks invest $16bln in oil, gas projects

GCC central banks track US Fed move; hike key rates by 25bps

UAE's Presight AI to debut on Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange next week

U.N. Libya envoy points to 'alternatives' if political bodies duck electoral pact

Nigeria's Obi petitions court over presidential election result

Thai PM dissolves parliament, calls election

Thailand prepares to dissolve parliament ahead of election

Mexico president calls big rally with election on horizon

LATEST VIDEO

VIDEO: LSE-listing will facilitate more funding opportunities for us, Dar Global CEO

ZAWYA COVERAGE

Will gold face more downside or upside after Fed's rate hike?

Kenya signs $250mln deal with UK to boost food production

PODCAST: IFC is ready to back governments privatisation plans with capital

UAE's Presight AI to debut on Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange next week

India-UAE travel alert: Airline announces changes to flight timings; all passengers advised to reconfirm

AD Ports Group launches new Ro-Ro Shipping Service to improve commercial connectivity with Kuwait

Reese Witherspoon, agent husband make 'difficult decision to divorce'

Influencers take stock of life and dreams if U.S. bans TikTok

Binance says withdrawals have resumed after technical glitches

THE BRI REPORT

China is reshaping the Belt and Road Initiative ahead of a post-pandemic era

DISCOVER MORE

LATEST VIDEO

ZAWYA NEWSLETTERS

ZAWYA COVERAGE