Trump says U.S. is failing under Democrats, pledges to ‘make America great again’ | CBC News

Donald Trump, bandaged and at times sombre, accepted the Republican presidential nomination on Thursday, describing in his speech how he felt during the recent attempt on his life. 

“I’m not supposed to be here tonight,” Trump told the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee as thousands of attendees listened in silence. “There was blood pouring everywhere, yet, in a certain way I felt very safe because I had God on my side.”

The former president, known best for his bombast and aggressive rhetoric, offered a softer and deeply personal message that drew directly from his brush with death. Later, he returned to a tone closer to his typical campaign message, outlining his priorities on immigration and the economy but also referencing false theories of election fraud and the indictments against him.

“The discord and division in our society must be healed. We just heal it quickly. As Americans, we are bound together by a single fate and a shared destiny. We rise together. Or we fall apart,” Trump said, wearing a large white bandage on his right ear, as he has all week, to cover the wound he sustained.

“I am running to be president for all of America, not half of America, because there is no victory in winning for half of America.”

Trump went on to falsely suggest Democrats had cheated during the 2020 election he lost — despite a raft of federal and state investigations proving there was no systemic fraud — and told the crowd “we must not criminalize dissent or demonize political disagreement,” even though he has long called for prosecutions of his opponents.

He also returned to other subjects that have long been central to his speeches — railing against crime while linking it to immigration, renewing his vow to build a wall along the border with Mexico, and suggesting that his first term was all but solely responsible for holding aggressive rival nations in check. 

“Our opponents inherited a world at peace and turned it into a planet of war,” he said. 

Trump’s address marks the conclusion of a massive four-day Republican pep rally that drew thousands of conservative activists and elected officials to swing-state Wisconsin as voters weigh an election that currently features two deeply unpopular candidates.

Sensing political opportunity in the wake of his near-death experience, the Republican leader embraced a new tone he hopes will help generate even more momentum in an election that appears to be shifting in his favour.

At 78, Trump is one of the oldest presidential candidates in U.S. history. 

His Democratic rival, President Joe Biden is 81 — himself the country’s oldest-ever sitting president. 

At one point during his speech, Trump slammed Biden — in what appeared to be a diversion from his prepared remarks, which did not mention his Democrat rival by name.

Trump claimed that to date, Biden’s single term in office has been more damaging than the combined actions of the top 10 worst presidents in U.S. history, whom he did not name.

“The damage that he has done to this country is unthinkable,” Trump said of Biden.

WATCH | A resolve to fight: 

Trump, unfazed by attempt on his life, vows to continue to fight for America

Not dissuaded by an assassination attempt on his life, former U.S. president Donald Trump promised he would continue to fight for America. ‘Our resolve is unbroken, and our purpose is unchanged,’ he said. ‘Nothing will stop me in this mission.’

Biden, meanwhile, faces campaign problems separate from Trump’s attacks on his record.

A growing number of Democratic lawmakers and donors have called for Biden to drop from the presidential ballot in the wake of a poor debate performance against Trump last month.

To date, some 20 congressional Democrats have called on Biden to stand down as their candidate — with Montana Sen. Jon Tester on Thursday joining the list.

“I have worked with President Biden when it has made Montana stronger, and I’ve never been afraid to stand up to him when he is wrong,” Tester said in a statement.

“And while I appreciate his commitment to public service and our country, I believe President Biden should not seek re-election to another term.”