President Trump says Democrats are ‘running a Gestapo regime’ at Republican National Committee annual dinner

CNN
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Former President Donald Trump ramped up his attacks on Democrats Saturday at a private luncheon he hosted at his Mar-a-Lago club, during which he called Democrats “running a Gestapo regime” and criticized Joe Biden.・He said that President Biden’s administration is comparable to Nazi Germany. To 3 participants.

The remarks were part of a larger outcry in which the former president accused the Biden administration of being behind the four criminal charges he faces.

The fundraiser was the centerpiece of the RNC’s annual retreat in Palm Beach. Hundreds of people attended the event, some of whom donated more than $40,000, a person familiar with the fundraiser told CNN.

Attendees said Trump repeatedly used name-calling during his speech as he criticized Special Counsel Jack Smith and other prosecutors who brought criminal charges.

The comments were part of a roughly 90-minute speech in which he touted recent fundraising numbers and lavished praise on his running mates, two people in attendance said. He claimed he was “begging” to be sworn in as a presidential candidate.

President Trump took to the stage Saturday for a recording of the national anthem on January 6th, featuring several people convicted of the 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. This song is frequently featured by his campaign at campaign rallies.

At one point during the event, Lara Trump, President Trump’s daughter-in-law and co-chair of the Republican National Committee, spoke out about a song titled “Justice for All,” which topped Billboard’s digital sales last year. He presented the Billboard Music Award to the former president for his song. .

At another point, Trump addressed those gathered at the resort and offered them a chance to speak at a podium for $1 million, three people in attendance said. In the end, two donors took to the stage, one to claim that God had chosen President Trump to lead the nation.

Trump also touted RNC Chairman Michael Whatley’s efforts to prevent fraud in the upcoming election, attendees told CNN. In his remarks, President Trump said he needed an attorney general with “courage,” while mocking former Attorney General William Barr, according to the New York Times. Barr has been a fierce critic of Trump since leaving office, but recently endorsed the former president.

Trump also spent several minutes praising former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who was impeached and removed from office on corruption charges in 2009, attendees said. President Trump commuted Blagojevich’s prison sentence in 2020. Blagojevich told CNN that he considers himself a “Trumpist” and that he is a Democrat who supports Trump.

Late Saturday, President Trump hosted a birthday party at Mar-a-Lago for Texas Congressman Ronnie Jackson, who served as one of Trump’s personal physicians while in office, according to multiple attendees. The former president used the event, which was also his fundraising opportunity, to make remarks about his own campaign against Biden.