Trump held his first large rally since leaving the White House

Donald Trump met with supporters in Ohio on Saturday night, in his first large rally since leaving the White House, Held in support of a Republican candidate for Congress.

Banned from social networks, the former president flirts with the idea of ​​running in 2024, but in the 90-minute speech he gave this Saturday at a funfair in Ohio, he made no clear mention of his political future, even as the crowd chanted “Four more years!” Four more years! “

“We may have to win a third time. It’s possible”, he said, once again denouncing that the November elections were fraudulent.

Trump touched on other topics (immigration, crime, the right to carry arms, Afghanistan, Iran), ranging from one to the other, as usual.

One message he reiterated was that US President Joe Biden is “catastrophic.”

“Joe Biden is destroying our nation before our eyes”, said the magnate.

Trump has so far given two major speeches since leaving the White House in January, one in North Carolina earlier this month.

The atmosphere in which this Saturday rally took place had nothing to do with that of its famous outdoor events.

The thousands of people who came to Wellington, Ohio were excited, but they weren’t as loud as usual at Trump rallies.

One of the former president’s goals was to support Conservative candidate Max Miller, one of his former advisers.

Trump has again made it clear that he intends to remain decisive in a Republican party that next year attempts to regain control of the Senate and House of Representatives.

In particular, he has shown his willingness to help candidates who support his Make America Great Again (MAGA, or “Make America Great Again”) movement.

– Still influential –

In the crowd, many wore T-shirts with slogans like “Trump 2024: Because America Can Never Be Too Big”.

“If you look at the Trump rallies, you will see that there are hundreds and hundreds of thousands of people and there is no way a crazy old man will win this election. said Laura Benas, 57, retail manager in Wellington, referring to Biden.

Trump, 75, has kept a relatively low profile since stepping down as president three weeks after the deadly Jan.6 uprising on Capitol Hill.

The House of Representatives indicted Trump for inciting insurgency. A dozen Republicans joined the Democrats, but the mogul was acquitted by the Senate. It was his second impeachment trial.

Now, Trump claims the head of Republicans who accused him, starting with Anthony Gonzalez, who will face Miller in the Republican primary in Ohio.

Trump’s Political Action Committee maintains that the Ohio rally marks the first of many appearances by the former president “in support of the candidates and causes that advance the MAGA agenda and the administration’s accomplishments.” previous)”.

– Independence Day demonstration –

Ohio has been one of the country’s major “pivotal states” for the past century.

But after voting for Barack Obama twice, he elected Republicans, opting for Trump in 2016 and 2020, and the former president is still hegemonic among large sections of the Republican electorate.

Openly pro-Trump Republican politicians like Florida Governor Ron DeSantis have achieved national stature.

This week, Trump’s PAC announced it will host a big event, complete with fireworks, in Sarasota, Fla. On July 3, the day before the Independence Day holiday.

And on Wednesday the former president will travel to Texas to visit the border area with Mexico and address the issue of illegal immigration, one of the central themes of his presidency.

(With information from AFP)

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