Former president Donald Trump holds a rally to encourage the audience to vote in the primaries.
Snipers on the roof watched through binoculars as long lines of people snaked inside the doors of the Coliseum and through security. People chatted and chanted among themselves about the state of the world and its affairs, many with differing opinions and life experiences–but they were all there for the same reason–to see former President Donald Trump.
In a sea of red hats and signs, he held his second rally in the Winthrop Coliseum on Feb. 23, the day before the Republican primary began. He took the stage around 4:15 p.m., following comments from Marjorie Taylor Green and Tim Scott, among others. He was guarded by secret service men and bulletproof glass.
As the audience waited, his campaign played “Justice for All” over the speakers, a rendition of the United States Pledge of Allegiance featuring Trump and the J6 Prison Choir, which was released on streaming platforms back in March of last year.
He was introduced by Gov. Henry McMaster, who said “This is what we really, really, want–we want someone who will protect our borders, return illegals and build a wall! We want a man who will get the ‘woke’ out of the military and put the fight back in! We want to put judges in the courts to protect the Constitution and enforce the law, and we want a man who will show our enemies abroad that America is standing back up, and it’s time for them to sit back down!”
Trump started by saying that the last time he was in the Coliseum was in January 2016 shortly before he took office; thus, he called the venue “lucky.” Trump also made remarks about the border, saying, “The border is having problems, they’ve got rapists, they’ve got thugs. What we have now is a total disaster.’’
He addressed his supporters, saying, “I am glad to be back in South Carolina with thousands of hardworking God God-fearing American patriots,’’ he said.
Respondents in the Winthrop Poll found that 46% of S.C.’s registered voters don’t or wouldn’t support a move by the federal government to declare the U.S. a Christian nation, but the majority of Republicans–55%–would support them doing so.
He continued by saying he wasn’t worried about the primary results, and instead encouraged attendees to get out and vote in the presidential election on Nov. 5. “Gotta beat Crooked Joe Biden–if it’s going to be him, I don’t know if he’ll make it to the starting gate–Henry (McMaster) would know.”
He also said that he thinks the “Ultra Left” will attempt to rig the Primary results in their favor, and criticized Democrats who vote in the Republican Primary.
“Together we built the greatest economy in the history of the world–it was the greatest economy in history, nobody’s ever seen anything like it–with the biggest tax cuts ever recorded–bigger than Ronald Reagan–and we like Ronald Reagan, but we beat him out on the tax cuts, the biggest regulation cuts, record energy production like never before and rising wages for Americans of every race, religion, color and creed. We never did so well.”
Gas prices have been at their highest since COVID. With this, Trump compared his presidential term with Biden’s in regards to inflation. “Under Biden gas prices have reached five, six and even seven dollars a gallon.’’ He said that under his leadership, gas prices were “under $1.87 a gallon.’’
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the average nationwide gas price per gallon for all types was $1.87 in February 2016, but steadily increased again in the following months, hovering around $2.50 a gallon. In January 2021, the national average was $2.42, and the price has spiked, reaching its peak in June 2022 at $5.32 a gallon.
Trump blames the high mortgage rates on the results of the 2020 election Joe Biden winning, which he thinks was rigged. He said the upcoming election could be a “failed’’ or “rigged election.’’ According to Trump, wars would not have taken place during his presidential term. “What they did in 2020 is disgraceful and look what happened to our country, you have wars that would have never taken place, Russia would have never attacked Ukraine, Israel would not have been attacked, you would not have inflation.’’
During the same time Trump was giving his speech, a student organization group called Students for Justice or SFORJ held a rally outside in protest of the ongoing events in Palestine and the Gaza strip. Their group advocates against the ongoing conflict in Sudan, the Congo and other oppressed countries.
Trump said that if he were elected president again, he already knows what’s at the top of his agenda. “Upon taking office I will end Joe Biden’s war on American energy, cancel his ban on exporting American natural gas, and we will quite simply drill.’’
According to a Winthrop University press release on the Winthrop Poll, “Among Independents who are likely to vote in the upcoming primary, 42.3% support Haley while 42.6% support Trump. Among GOP voters only, Trump maintains a stronghold at 72%.’’
Trump won the S.C. Primary vote the following day with about 59.8% of votes compared to Haley, who had 39.5%. Trump said that Nikki Haley “is essentially a democrat’’ because she receives funding from Democratic companies, and Republicans do not like her policies. After she lost the Primary, a Libertarian conservative organization called Americans for Prosperity–owned by the Koch brothers,–discontinued sending funds to Haley’s campaign.
As Trump wraps up his rally, he speaks again on the things he previously mentioned that are going on in the world and that these things would not happen under the Trump administration. “I will have the horrible war between Russia and Ukraine settled, people dying by the thousands. Under the Trump administration we will return to peace and strength, they respected us all over the world. Three years ago we had the most secure border in U.S history.”
Voting for the presidential election will begin November 5. In the state of South Carolina, you must be registered 30 days before voting begins. For more information, visit Winthrop’s frequently asked questions about voting.
