Trump opens the 2024 run and says he is “more committed” than ever

Former US President Donald Trump kicked off his 2024 bid for the White House with Saturday stops in New Hampshire and South Carolina, events in early voting states that marked the first campaign appearances since announcing his last run more than two months ago.

“Together we will complete the unfinished business of making America great again,” Trump said at an evening event in Columbia to introduce his South Carolina leadership team.

Trump and his allies hope that the events in states of immense power in selecting the nominee will be a show of force behind the former president after a slow start to his campaign that left many questioning his commitment to running again.

“They said, ‘He doesn’t hold rallies, he doesn’t campaign. Maybe he lost that step,'” Trump said at the New Hampshire GOP annual meeting in Salem, his first event.

But, he told the audience of party leaders, “I am now angrier and more committed than ever before.” In South Carolina, he further dismissed the speculation saying that “we have huge rallies planned, bigger than ever before.”

While Trump has largely spent the months since he announced nestled at his Florida club and nearby golf course, his aides insist they’ve been busy behind the scenes.

His campaign opened a headquarters in Palm Beach, Florida, and hired staff. And in recent weeks, backers have reached out to political operatives and elected officials to rally support for Trump at a critical point as other Republicans prepare their own expected challenges.

In New Hampshire, Trump promoted his campaign agenda, including immigration and crime, and said his policies would be the opposite of President Joe Biden’s. He cited the Democrats’ move to change the election calendar, which cost New Hampshire its top spot.

He accused Biden, a fifth-place finisher in New Hampshire in 2020, of “shamefully destroying this beloved political tradition.”

“I hope you remember that during the general election,” Trump told party members.

The Republican runner won the primary twice, but lost the state to the Democrats each time.

While Trump remains the only declared 2024 presidential candidate, potential challengers, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, who is Trump’s ambassador to the United Nations, expected them to launch their campaigns. in the next months.