Trump’s Dallas speech runs an hour and 44 minutes, surpassing his record
Donald Trump proposed renaming the Strait of Hormuz the “Trump Strait” while discussing the Iran war at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas. “Ladies and gentlemen, I’ll have an announcement, we’ll call it the ‘Trump Strait’ and I’m sure the Iranian leadership will be thrilled with that,” he said.
Trump advised Iran “not to get cute” and asked the crowd: “Does anybody here think that Iran should have a nuclear weapon?” He drew a shouted “No!” He also described a hypothetical in which Iran obtained a nuclear weapon and subjugated the United States. “If they had a nuclear weapon, I’d be calling the Supreme Leader and I’d be saying, ‘Mr Supreme Leader, how are you, sir? Is there anything we can do for you?’ – as opposed to bombing the crap out of him,” Trump said. The Guardian reported that the Iran war is a subject many Republicans would rather avoid in an election year.
The speech ran an hour and 44 minutes, surpassing the record-length convention address Trump gave in Milwaukee two years ago, according to The Guardian. The newspaper reported that the 80-year-old president never stopped to sip water. The report also identified Natalie Harp as Trump’s aide.
Trump described the event as “the first ever midterm convention of any party”; The Guardian noted that Democrats held three midterm conventions in the 1970s and 1980s.
Turning to the midterms, Trump asked voters to “pretend” that he is on the ballot and promised $5,000 to every adult US citizen if Republicans retain control of both the House and Senate.
The Guardian reported that Trump falsely claimed to have won three presidential elections and falsely declared that “people on the other side are actually admitting it.” The crowd cheered and shouted, “Four more years!”
Trump also said the arena was packed and that an equal number of people were standing outside. “Not only is this packed, but you have an equal number of people standing outside. If anybody would like to give up their seat!” he said. The Guardian reported that there were dozens of empty seats, with the upper tier mostly unfilled. After 80 minutes, Trump said no one had left the arena, a claim the newspaper described as dubious. “It’s a great tribute to Trump … Everybody loves me and I love everybody!” he said.
On the Texas Senate race, Trump endorsed the state’s attorney general, Ken Paxton. “He may not dress right, he may not talk exactly perfectly and he may not be the best looking guy I’ve ever seen but you know what he is? He’s the greatest attorney general in America and he deserves to be your next senator,” Trump said. “I’m sorry, Ken. Where the hell is he? He’ll never speak to me again but that’s OK.”
Trump also referred to James Talarico, the Democrats’ Senate candidate in Texas, as “Talafreako.” “He ran a campaign to ‘beat meat.’ He called it ‘beat meat.’ I don’t know what the hell he meant by that … he wants to ‘beat meat?’ … I’m getting myself in trouble. He was recently seen having a barbecue and eating a lot of meat,” he said.
Trump proposed several geographic name changes. His mention of the “Gulf of America” drew cheers and chants of “USA! USA!” He said, “Lake Ontario, you know we’re going to call that Lake America,” to more cheers, and said of New Mexico: “We think it should be called ‘New America.’”
Trump also proposed changing “Democrats” to “Dumocrats.” “Nobody knows that dumb has a B at the end of it – most people think it’s ‘D-U-M’,” he said. The Guardian reported that the audience “lapped it up and encouraged him.”
Trump separately called Democrats “communists” and said, “They have more bullshit than any human beings on the planet.” The Guardian reported that his supporters “went wild” in response to those remarks.
The Guardian reported that Trump contrasted the event with the State of the Union address, imitating a stiff, dreary formal delivery. “State of the Union, you have to be very staid,” he said: “Ladies and gentlemen, it’s an honour to be your president.” The crowd laughed. He continued: “You do that for about an hour and then everybody’s falling asleep. This is a much harder routine, let me tell you. We’re also out here to have a little bit of fun.” The crowd roared.
In his Sept. 10 report from Dallas, David Smith of The Guardian placed Trump’s appearance alongside historical accounts of leaders seeking youth. Smith wrote that North Korea’s Kim Il-sung reportedly sought transfusions of blood from young men, China’s Mao Zedong believed sex with young women could prolong his life, and Muammar Gaddafi underwent fat injections and hair transplantation to make himself look younger.
The Guardian characterized Trump’s second term as a “quest in self-mythology.” The newspaper pointed to foreign policy aimed at reshaping the world, monuments and renovations in Washington DC, social-media posts and AI depictions in which Trump appears as a young, virile and victorious figure.
Trump’s remarks also ranged across sporting trades involving the Dallas Mavericks and Babe Ruth, and he said his political career had required him to sacrifice hygiene so he could shake hands. “I’m a very clean person,” he said.
Trump explained his discursive speaking style. “I love the weave,” he said. “You know what the weave is? You talk about something, then you bring in a ballroom, or you bring in an aeroplane, or you bring in Air Force One – but you notice I always get right back to the same topic. Some day there’ll be a time when I do the weave, weave, weave; some day there’ll be a time when I don’t get back to the original subject.” Pointing his finger in the air, he added: “And then you can say: he’s had it.”
The appearance came Wednesday night on the first day of the convention before a crowd of thousands, according to The Guardian, including Make America Great Again supporters who, in some cases, have followed Trump for more than a decade. Among them were the “front row Joes” from his rallies, including Blake Marnell, who wore a brick-patterned suit resembling a brick wall.
Lee Greenwood sang “God Bless the USA,” the familiar introduction to Trump campaign rallies, and a giant video screen with the US flag rose to reveal dozens of mainly female supporters waving little flags and smiling. Trump, wearing a navy blue suit, white shirt and blue tie, walked slowly across the shiny black, gold-trimmed stage as chants of “USA! USA!” erupted.