by WACO, Texas — Former President Donald Trump vowed to destroy the “deep state” during a campaign rally in this city on Saturday, which is in the midst of the 30th anniversary of the federal siege of anti-government cult leader David Koresh’s compound.
“Either the deep state destroys America or we destroy the deep state,” Trump said of the stakes in his bid to return to the Oval Office.
In the first major rally of his campaign, Trump addressed thousands of boisterous supporters on the tarmac of a regional airport. Prior to his comments, his red, white, and blue jet circled the crowd before landing and stopping behind his stage.
He referred to the administration of his successor, Joe Biden, as the “Biden regime,” accused Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg of “prosecutor misconduct” in investigating it, and said that “the Supreme Court did not have the courage to correct the mistake.” from their 2020 loss.
“When this election is over, I will be the president of the United States,” Trump declared. “They will be vindicated and proud, and the thugs and criminals who are corrupting our justice system will be defeated, discredited and totally disgraced.”
“I am your warrior. I am your justice. And I took a lot of heat for this one, but I only mean it the right way: to those who have been wronged and betrayed… I am your retribution.”
But Trump also took direct aim at his main rival for the Republican nomination, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has yet to announce whether he will run.
Trump lashed out at DeSantis for flirting with a run, even though it helped him win the governorship in 2018. The former president criticized DeSantis for his handling of the COVID pandemic and past positions favoring cuts to Medicare and Safety. Social. He also said the Florida governor’s narrative of revitalizing the state is misleading.
“Florida has been tremendously successful for many years, long before this guy became governor,” Trump said. “Florida has been successful for decades.”
In comments to reporters on his plane after the rally, Trump further criticized DeSantis, saying, “He has no personality. That tends to be bad for a politician.”
He added that if she hadn’t helped him become governor, “I’d probably be working in a cigar shop or a law firm.”
DeSantis’ spokesman did not immediately return a request for comment Saturday night after the rally.
Coupled with the physical backdrop of this small town on the Brazos River, a three-hour drive from Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Austin, Trump is surrounded by the possibility of impeachments in Manhattan, Atlanta and Washington, D.C., per questions. about paying hush money to a porn star, his efforts to overturn the 2020 election, and the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol.
Trump took the stage with the video “Justice for all” Playing: A choir of men jailed for their role in the January 6 riots singing the national anthem, interposed with Trump reciting the allegiance oath. It also included images of the insurrection.
Trump has been criticizing government officials investigating him, with increasingly dark warnings about the “death and destruction” that could ensue if he is impeached.
But as much as it’s impossible to ignore the obvious spectacle of an anti-establishment candidate stoking thousands of his supporters at the scene of a confrontation between federal agents and anti-government conspiracy theorists, there are more traditional political reasons why Trump chose Waco as the launch. point for a new round of his trademark rallies.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said Saturday that he had suggested Waco when Trump called seeking his advice more than two weeks ago.
“I didn’t even know it was the 30th anniversary of being honest with you guys,” Patrick told a small group of reporters.
As he seeks the Republican presidential nomination for the third time in a row, Trump and his team understand well the importance of Texas in delivering delegates to the Republican National Convention. The state is second only to California in the number of available delegates, and will be more important to the final count than the top four states (Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina) combined.
“It’s guaranteed to be a crowd for him and I think that’s part of the success they can have going to the red states,” said a former Trump campaign adviser. “It’s intimidating. It’s a show of force. Here are 10, 15,000, whatever, people in a room and no one else can do that.”
It also fits your basic pattern of picking up sites that are outside of major cities but accessible to them.
“President Trump will hold his first campaign rally in Waco, Texas on Super Tuesday because it is centrally located and close to the four largest metropolitan areas in Texas,” said Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung. “This is the ideal location for as many supporters as possible from across the state and neighboring states to attend this historic rally.”
Trump aides dismiss the possibility that holding a rally in Waco on the 30th anniversary of the siege could show sympathy for anti-government voters.
“That sounds like things people in New York or DC who have never been to Texas would say,” said a Trump aide.
In addition to Patrick, Trump announced his Texas leadership team for the state, which included 12 of the 25 Republican members of the Texas House.
He was also joined by Reps. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., and Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., who cheered on one of their largest crowds since losing the presidency.
Gaetz said from the stage, and later while posing for photos with the crowd, that DeSantis and Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, should endorse Trump.
But Gaetz dodged a question about whether DeSantis could hurt his future ambitions by taking on Trump.
“I’m a legislator,” he said, “not an expert.”
