The president’s speech from the White House’s South Lawn marked a sea change from his 2019 address, which largely stuck to patriotic and not political themes.
President Donald Trump on Saturday railed against protesters, China and the media in an address marking America’s Independence Day — typically a non-partisan celebration of national unity.
Trump, whose address largely mimicked the tone of his stump speeches, continued his attacks on protesters he said are “lying” about American history by calling for the removal of statues and memorials celebrating slaveholders and colonial and Confederate figures.
And similar to his speech at Mount Rushmore on Friday, Trump pledged to defend American monuments and the country’s “rich heritage.”
“We will never allow an angry mob to tear down our statues, erase our history, indoctrinate our children or trample on our freedoms,” the president said, assailing protesters as “anarchist agitators” who “have absolutely no clue what they are doing.”
The Saturday speech, delivered on July 4 amid the backdrop of a pandemic, record-high unemployment and nationwide protests, marked a sea change from Trump’s Independence Day address in 2019, which largely stuck to patriotic and not political themes.
And as the president faces questions over his agenda for a potential second term, Trump hinted that his priorities will remain largely the same: low taxes, a strong military, religious freedom and law and order.
“We should all want the same thing,” Trump said.
Trump also defended his administration’s pandemic response, pinning the blame for the virus on China.
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The event in Washington, D.C., featured flyovers by military aircraft and will be capped off by fireworks on the National Mall. Crowds on the Mall were light Saturday as officials urged social distancing, TV station WTOP reported.
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As President Donald Trump faces questions over his agenda for a potential second term, he hinted in his July 4 address that his priorities will remain largely the samehttps://t.co/LMkGUAeY62
— POLITICO (@politico) July 5, 2020
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