On the night before one of the most consequential Democratic primaries, President Donald Trump said the Democratic Party is at its weakest point in history.
“They’re all fighting each other. They don’t know what they’re doing. They can’t even count their votes,” Trump said during a rally at Southern New Hampshire University. “My only problem is I’m trying to figure out who is their weakest candidate. I think they’re all weak.”
In a meandering address to his supporters in Manchester, New Hampshire, the president touted his acquittal in the third impeachment trial in American history and said that the United States has never been doing better economically.
“The radical left’s completely partisan crusade has failed,” Trump said. “While the extreme left has been wasting America’s time with these vile hopes, we’ve been killing terrorists, creating jobs and lifting citizens up of every race, religion and creed.”
Trump is expected to handily win the GOP's New Hampshire primary on Tuesday, despite a challenge from former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld.
Defiant after surviving the gravest threat to his presidency, Trump painted the acquittal as not just a victory for himself but for the Republican party as a whole.
“I want to thank our Republican senators and our Republican House members, as they were tremendous,” Trump said. “The Republicans are energized. …Nine months from now, we are going to take back the House of Representatives.”
Amid a sea of bright red “Make America Great Again” hats and “Trump 2020” signs, Trump laid out a narrative of an America on the rise, but one that is at risk of succumbing to the dangers of socialism if a Democrat is sworn into office in 2021.
“The fact is America is respected again. But, as we keep on winning, Washington Democrats keep on losing their minds. They’re crazy,” Trump said. “They want to take our energy away they want to take our wealth away.”
Though four years ago, Trump was an insurgent candidate battling with the Republican establishment for the nomination, on Monday Trump proudly touted the nearly party line vote in both the impeachment and ensuing trial and thanked Sens. Lindsey Graham and Rand Paul who joined him in the audience. Sen. Rick Scott, the former governor of Florida, was also in attendance and echoed the president’s language while enthusiastically endorsing Trump’s re-election.
“This race is about socialism and capitalism. If you look at where the Democratic Party has gone they’re [promoting] socialism, Trump’s talking about the opportunity of capitalism,” Scott said. “They’re all talking about Medicare for All and the Green New Deal, that’s not where the country is.”
Like Scott, both inside and outside the event, a majority of attendees WGBH News spoke with cited the economy as their main reason for backing the president and were concerned Democrats would unleash socialism on the nation if given the chance.
“I like how he’s changing the economy for the better, and he’s just really doing good things for our country,” said Peter O’Grady, a resident of Derry, New Hampshire.
When it came to the question of impeachment, no one at the rally WGBH News spoke to felt that the president did anything wrong when he asked the Ukrainian government to open an investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden in exchange for military aid. Cindy Duchemin, a Manchester resident, said that the notion Trump abused his power was a “hoax” and sympathized with the president.
“He’s been through a terrible, terrible ordeal with the Democrats,” Duchemin said. “It’s been terrible what they’ve done to our president.”
Three attendees who were residents of Massachusetts also took aim at Republican Gov. Charlie Baker for not supporting Trump. Baker has frequently said that he did not vote for the president and told WGBH News in December that he did not think Trump had the right temperament to occupy the White House.
“I liked Baker, and now I don’t,” said Newburyport resident Kathy Logan. “I actually campaigned for him, and he’s let me down tremendously.”
Attendees also swatted down accusations that the president was racist. Kerilynn Houghton, who drove in from Franklin, Massachusetts, with her husband Ken Houghton, said that she’s offended by accusations that the president is racist.
“It makes me angry because I voted for him so I feel like they’re also saying that about me, and that it’s uncalled for,” Houghton said. “I don’t think anybody should be racist at all.”
Logan agreed with Houghton’s sentiment and said accusations that Trump was racist are claims manufactured by his opponents. Despite Trump calling for stricter boarder control with Mexico and migrant family separations, Logan said that she believes he’s been a fervent supporter of communities of color.
“If he’s a racist, he’s the worst racist we’ve ever had in our country,” Logan said. “He can’t be a racist and grow employment in the black community, the Hispanic community.”
Despite Trump holding a 41 percent approval rating, and recent polls showing he would face stiff competition from Bernie Sanders, Joe Biden, Elizabeth Warren or Pete Buttigieg, at his rally the prevailing sentiment was that re-election will be a shoe in. Tim Murtaugh, the communications director for Trump’s campaign, said he was not concerned about any of the Democrats in the race because they would brand them all as socialists, despite Sanders being the only one who identified as a socialist. Scott was equally optimistic about Trump’s chances.
O’Grady summed up his feelings about Trump and his chance at re-election succinctly.
“Honestly, I just think everything he does is awesome,” O’Grady said. “I was laughing [at the Democrats] when they impeached him. They were all talking out their a**es”
