WASHINGTON — Donald Trump was booed repeatedly while speaking at the Libertarian Party National Convention on Saturday night, with many in the crowd shouting insults and criticizing him for things like his COVID-19 policies, running up huge federal deficits and lying about his record. political.
When he took the stage, many jeered as some supporters dressed in “Make America Great” hats and t-shirts cheered and chanted “USA! USA!” It was a rare moment when Trump came face to face with outspoken detractors, which is highly unusual for someone used to organizing rallies in front of always adoring crowds.
Libertarians, who prioritize small government and individual freedoms, are often skeptical of the former president, and his invitation to speak at the convention has divided the party. Trump tried to downplay this by referring to the four criminal charges against him and joking, “If I wasn’t a libertarian before, I sure as hell am a libertarian now.”
Trump tried to praise the “fierce defenders of freedom in this room” and called President Joe Biden a “tyrant” and “the worst president in the history of the United States,” prompting some in the room to shout back, “It’s you.”
As the insults continued, Trump eventually reacted, saying “you don’t want to win” and suggesting that some libertarians want to “keep getting your 3% every four years.”
Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson won about 3% of the national vote in 2016, but candidate Jo Jorgensen only got a little more than 1% during the tight 2020 race.
Libertarians will choose their candidate for the White House during the convention, which ends on Sunday. Trump’s appearance also gave him the opportunity to woo voters who might otherwise support independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who gave his own speech at the Libertarian Convention on Friday.
Polls have shown for months that a majority of voters do not want a 2020 rematch between Trump and President Joe Biden. That dynamic could potentially increase support for an alternative like the libertarian candidate or Kennedy, whose candidacy has left allies of Biden and Trump concerned that he is a spoiler.
Despite the raucous atmosphere, Trump continued to insist on his speech, saying he had come “to extend the hand of friendship” in common opposition to Biden. This prompted a cry of “We want Trump!” from supporters, but more chants of “End the Fed!” – a common refrain from libertarians who oppose the Federal Reserve. A person who held up a sign that said “No wannabe dictators!” was dragged away by security.
Trump tried to win over the crowd by promising to add a libertarian to his cabinet, but many in the crowd hissed in disbelief. The former president drew loud applause when he promised to commute the life sentence of convicted drug-selling website Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht and potentially release him on schedule.
This is designed to energize libertarian activists who believe government investigators overreached in building their case against Silk Road, and who generally oppose criminal drug policies more broadly. Ulbricht’s case was heavily discussed during the Libertarian convention, and many of the hundreds of people present at Trump’s speech held up “Free Ross” signs and chanted the phrase as he spoke.
Despite these promises, many in the crowd remained antagonistic. One of the candidates running for the Libertarian presidential nomination, Michael Rectenwald, declared on stage, before the former president’s arrival, that “none of us are big fans of Donald Trump”. After his speech, Rectenwald and other libertarian White House candidates took the stage to mock Trump and his speech.
Those for and against Trump even clashed over seating arrangements. About two hours before the former president’s arrival, libertarian organizers asked Trump supporters in the crowd to vacate the first four rows. They wanted convention delegates — many of whom said they had traveled across the country and purchased expensive tickets to the proceedings — to be able to sit close enough to hear the speech.
Many of the original seat occupants moved away, but organizers eventually brought in more seats to calm things down.
The libertarian divide over Trump was reflected by Peter Goettler, president and chief executive of the libertarian Cato Institute, who suggested in a Washington Post column that the former president’s appearance violated the gathering’s core values and that “the political party who pretends to be libertarian has transitioned to a different identity.”
The Trump campaign noted that Biden himself did not attend the Libertarian convention and argued that the former president’s act was part of an ongoing effort to reach potential supporters in places that are not heavily Republican — including the former president’s rally on Thursday. on Friday in the Bronx during a break in his secret trial in New York.
The Libertarian ticket will try to attract support from disaffected Republicans as well as people on the left. These voters could also gravitate toward Kennedy.
Trump did not address Kennedy on Saturday night. But after previously praising him and once considering him for a vaccination safety panel, the former president went on the attack against Kennedy. He suggested on social media that voting for Kennedy would be a “wasted protest vote” and that he would “even put Biden over Junior.”
The former president, while in office, referred to the COVID-19 vaccine as “one of the greatest miracles in the history of modern medicine.” He has since accused Kennedy of being a “phony” opponent of vaccines.
In his speech at the Libertarian convention, Kennedy accused Trump and Biden of trampling on personal freedoms in response to the pandemic. Trump bowed to pressure from public health officials and closed businesses, Kennedy said, while Biden was wrong to require vaccines for millions of workers.
In turn, Biden promoted obtaining the support of many important members of the Kennedy family, in an attempt to marginalize his family member’s candidacy.
Kevin Munoz, a spokesman for Biden’s reelection campaign, criticized Trump and top Republicans for opposing abortion access and supporting limits on civil society, saying in a statement Saturday that “freedom is not free in Trump’s Republican Party.” and this weekend will be just another reminder of that.”
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
