At the start of his speech at the Libertarian Party’s national convention on Saturday, Donald J. Trump bluntly told party delegates that they should nominate him as their presidential candidate. He was vigorously booed.
When the jeers died down, Mr. Trump, visibly frustrated by the rowdy reception he had received since he took the stage, dug in and went further, appearing to insult the very group that had him guest.
“Only do this if you want to win,” he said of his nomination. “If you want to lose, don’t do this. Continue to receive your three percent every four years.
The booing started again, but louder.
Mr. Trump’s speech was without modern precedent: the presumptive nominee of a major political party was giving a prime-time speech at another party’s convention.
But as Mr. Trump tried to urge libertarians to unite behind him in a common effort to defeat President Biden, he was met with a hostility absent from the friendly crowds at his rallies, which overshadowed his appeals to their cause common.
Mr. Trump’s speech was delivered to an audience that included supporters wearing red MAGA hats, as well as libertarians unhappy with his presence at the convention where they will select their own presidential candidate.
Throughout his remarks, the room’s warring factions attempted to drown out each other, a dynamic that was immediately apparent when Mr. Trump was called on stage.
Virtually every time Mr. Trump was booed, his supporters responded by chanting, “We want Trump.” While those wearing MAGA hats applauded a political statement, many of those who objected to Mr. Trump’s presence booed or shouted insults.
Often, the cycle ended only when someone began chanting “End the Fed,” a unifying policy goal that everyone present seemed to agree on.
Mr. Trump appeared upset by the chaotic atmosphere. He appeared to rush his speech, appearing to stick to prepared remarks and avoiding the digressions or jokes that often characterize his meetings.
Yet the reception was not entirely negative, with Mr. Trump managing to find common ground with the Libertarian Party on a number of issues.
At the heart of the Libertarian Party’s platform is the belief in limited government and unlimited individual freedoms. Libertarians tend to lean to the right on fiscal issues, opposing taxes, large regulatory agencies, and government spending on defense.
As he often does, Mr. Trump denounced government bureaucracy and regulation, remarks that were largely well-received. He promised that, if elected, he would place libertarians in his cabinet and in high positions, a vow that drew some of the loudest cheers of the evening.
Mr. Trump also promised to commute the life sentence of Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the black market site Silk Road, sentenced to life in prison in 2015. His release is a major demand of libertarians, and many participants. held up “Free Ross” signs.
But overall, any moments of harmony were overshadowed by sharp dissent. After speaking for 35 minutes, Mr. Trump offered a final note: “You can either nominate us and put us in this position, or you can give us your votes. » Another chorus of boos constituted the last moment of the evening.
Well before his speech, the Libertarian Party’s decision to invite Mr. Trump to its convention sparked outrage among some members, who said it undermined the party’s integrity and gave a platform to a candidate who , in many ways, completely disagrees with their beliefs.
Anne Welch, a delegate from Texas, said she was stunned that Mr. Trump, a Republican, had time to speak, effectively delaying the party’s decision on its nominee, adding that she was deeply opposed to his efforts to achieve victory for the party. support.
“He’s going to pose as a libertarian,” Ms. Welch said. “But he is the ultimate authoritarian.”
Mr. Trump’s efforts to engage with the Libertarian Party date back several months. Richard Grenell, the former acting director of national intelligence, played a key role in trying to win Mr. Trump’s support among some libertarian activists and donors.
After the speech, Mr. Grenell suggested in a post on social media that he had arranged for Mr. Trump to attend the convention, and he blasted liberal critics of his appearance. “Donald Trump does not shy away from dissenting opinions,” he wrote. “Only your team does it.”
Disagreements over Mr. Trump’s invitation were evident throughout the convention. During votes on official party acts Friday, one participant shouted, “I would like to propose that we tell Donald Trump” to get lost, using an expletive. A vulgar chant incorporating Mr. Trump’s name broke out.
On Saturday, hours before his speech, a number of Libertarian delegates – who had paid to attend the convention – arrived at the ballroom and found that Trump supporters had taken reserved seats at the front of the room.
“I don’t want to fight with people or beg and plead,” party chairwoman Angela McArdle told Trump supporters. “Let’s just leave room for the delegates, because they’re the ones you’re trying to convince.”
After the speech, Senator Mike Lee of Utah, a libertarian-leaning Republican who attended, said Mr. Trump’s speech was a success whether or not he received the party’s nomination. “That speech was a home run,” he said, “because there are libertarians all over the country watching this.”
Both Democrats and Republicans have sometimes argued that third-party candidates hurt their chances in the last two presidential elections. The Libertarian candidate in 2020, Jo Jorgensen, won 1.2 percent of the national vote. In Arizona, she won by more than 50,000 votes. Mr. Trump lost the state to Mr. Biden by just over 10,000 votes.
Some Libertarian leaders and delegates were unhappy with the idea that Mr. Trump or Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the independent presidential candidate who spoke at the convention on Friday, might court their vote, calling such invitations a play theater to attract media attention.
And then there was the incident that illustrates the tension surrounding Mr. Trump’s presence: the mystery of the sticker.
The campaign of one of the party’s presidential candidates, Lars Mapstead, said it spent $20,000 on ads to place around the lobby of the Washington Hilton, where the convention is being held, including a large floor sticker that read: ” Let’s deny Trump and Biden.” Victory on election night.
Mr. Mapstead has been a vocal critic of Mr. Trump, particularly his role in increasing the national debt. In an interview with The New York Times on Friday, he said: “We reject everything that concerns him. »
Daniel Johnson, an aide to Mr. Mapstead, said that on Thursday a man who identified himself as a representative of the Libertarian Party asked that the ads be removed.
Mr. Johnson said he physically stopped the man from removing the ads after learning he worked for an events coordinator for Mr. Trump. On Friday, a video emerged showing hotel security removing the sticker from the floor.
The Trump campaign has denied any involvement in this episode. A person at the Washington Hilton identified as a manager said they were unaware of the ads being removed.
Mr. Mapstead blamed the Trump campaign. “It leads to this whole rigged system,” he said. “A more powerful candidate can eliminate a less powerful candidate.”
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News Source : www.nytimes.com
