All of the talk of getting older showed signs of grating on Donald Trump as he addressed supporters in Las Vegas and delivered a wrathful vision of his near-inevitable general election campaign against president Joe Biden.
Over the course of a 90-minute speech on Saturday, Trump reiterated his campaign message of border security and illegal immigration as central to the concerns of most Americans. He vowed to initiate a mass deportation programme if he is returned to the White House in the November election.
“This is the single greatest threat to our country right now. There are people pouring into our country and we have no idea who they are. The fact is that if Joe Biden truly wanted to secure the border, he doesn’t need a Bill. I didn’t need a Bill! I did it with the current laws. I used border patrol. It is not that complicated. You say I don’t want the people coming in. All Biden needs to do is reimpose every border policy of the former president, Donald Trump.
“Within moments of my inauguration we will begin the largest domestic deportation operation. We have no choice because this is not sustainable.”
Cutting off family members: ‘It had never occurred to me that you could grieve somebody who was still alive’
The bird-shaped obsession that drives James Crombie, one of Ireland’s best sports photographers
The Dublin riots, one year on: ‘I know what happened doesn’t represent Irish people’
The week in US politics: Gaetz fiasco shows Trump he won’t get everything his way
[ Inside Donald Trump’s cut-throat conquest of Iowa and New HampshireOpens in new window ]
[ Donald Trump ordered to pay E Jean Carroll $83.3m in defamation trialOpens in new window ]
Trump was in Las Vegas campaigning ahead of the February voting date which carries a dual ballot system for Republican nominees this year. The caucus, on February 8th, will carry Trump’s name while Nikki Haley will be the sole contestant in the primary, on February 6th, which the Nevada secretary of state is required to run.
However, the Nevada Republican Party has decided that its caucuses will be used for the purpose of awarding presidential delegates. The former president commands complete support among Republican voters, with the Haley campaign bypassing the state and concentrating on increasing support in her home state of South Carolina.
Haley’s refusal to bow out of the race has been a source of irritation to Trump. In Las Vegas, he took a verbal detour to address, in a rambling fashion, the provocative observation by Haley that American voters do not wish for another election between two 80-year-old candidates and responded to her suggestion that mental competency issues should become a required part of the role.
“Five years is a big difference. They always say I’m 81. We are not the same age. I tell you what, I feel sharper now than I did 20 years ago. I don’t know, it’s probably not true! And I think anybody running for president should take an aptitude or cognitive test. And I took one in office. Remember?” he told supporters before elaborating on a competency test he took in 2020 which, he said, many media reports traduced by mocking the elementary questions while omitting the complex mathematics and memory tests which he “aced”.
“I think anyone running for president and maybe other positions I think taking certain tests – cognitive tests, aptitude tests, I think that would be a good thing. Not based on age, I don’t care if you are 35 years old. And you would be amazed at how many people would fail it.”
[ 'I want fresh blood': Americans show fatigue at prospect of Trump/Biden rematchOpens in new window ]
Coincidentally, vice-president Kamala Harris was in Las Vegas addressing Democratic supporters on Saturday, to mark the first day of early voting in the Nevada Democratic Primary. Her speech did not reference the immigration issue but, forecasting the tone of the election ahead, she warned of the dangers of a second Trump presidency.
“Today, as always, he made it clear his fight is not for his people, his fight is for himself,” she told supporters. “Understand what dictators do. Dictators jail journalists. Dictators suspend elections. Dictators take your rights. As the great Maya Angelou once said, ‘When someone tells you who they are, believe them.’”
The Democratic primary takes place on February 6th, with Joe Biden and self-help author Marianne Williamson, a fringe challenger for the Democratic nomination, the only other name on the ballot.
- Sign up for push alerts and have the best news, analysis and comment delivered directly to your phone
- Find The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to date
- Our In The News podcast is now published daily – Find the latest episode here
