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Donald Trump Delivers Blistering Speech in Response to Orlando Terror Attack
Presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump spoke today on the threat of Islamist terror in the aftermath of the grisly Orlando attack which left 50 dead and 52 wounded. Using a teleprompter, a rare occurrence for the campaign, Trump outlined his plan to defeat ISIS and “make America safe again.” (The speech starts at about the 10:25 mark.)
Delivered in Manchester, NH, the 35-minute speech began with a criticism of Hillary Clinton, saying “she lacks the temperament and integrity to be our President.” Trump noted that “the attack on the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, FL was the worst terror strike on our soil since Sept. 11 and the worst mass shooting in our country’s history,” and asked for a moment of silence for the dead.
“Our nation stands together in solidarity with Orlando’s LGBT community,” he said. “It’s a strike at the heart and soul of who we are as a nation. It’s an assault on the ability of free people to live their lives, love who they want, and express their identity.”
The speech wasn’t without standard Trump lines, stating again and again that our country has big problems, emphasizing his toughness, and his opposition to political correctness. It also included incorrect claims, such as claiming that the Pulse terrorist “was born in Afghan” [sic] when he was actually born in the U.S. (After a pause, he added “of Afghan parents,” so perhaps that was an error from reading the teleprompter.)
Although he has gone back and forth on the issue, Trump reiterated his plan to ban Muslim immigration until “we’re in a position to properly and perfectly screen these people.” He added, “thousands and thousands of people, many of whom have the same thought process as this savage killer” are pouring into the country.
“Radical Islam is anti-woman, anti-gay, and anti-American. I refuse to allow America to become a place where gay people, Christian people, Jewish people, are targets of persecution and intimidation by radical Islamic preachers of hate and violence.” He added, “We need to tell the truth about radical Islam and we need to do it now.”
“When it comes to radical Islam, ignorance is not bliss. It’s deadly,” Trump said, targeting the failures of Clinton and President Obama. “I will have an Attorney General, a Director of National Intelligence, and a Secretary of State who know how to fight the war on radical Islamic terror. And they will have the tools they need to do it right. Not like it’s being done now. It’s not right.”
In hitting Clinton, Trump went from legitimate concerns to overblown fearmongering, saying that radical Islamists are “trying to take over our children, and convince them how wonderful ISIS is” and claiming that the US has no screening system, when we do, albeit an insufficient one. But he is right to note that “the burden is on Hillary Clinton to tell us why we should admit anyone into our country who supports violence of any kind against gay and lesbian Americans. “
“Ask yourself who is really the friend of women and the LGBT community,” he said, “Donald Trump with his actions or Hillary Clinton with her words? I will tell you who the better friend is and someday I believe that will be proven out — bigly.”
Several commentators on the left and right criticized the speech for the usual Trumpian gaffes, misstatements, braggadocio, and lack of detail. But his tough talk on Islamic terror offered a dramatic and welcome contrast to the minced words and vague sentiments offered by President Obama and Hillary Clinton.
Published in Islamist Terrorism
Too often the clear diagnosis of “unstable sociopath” occurs at the first demonstration of this characteristic.
I’ve not followed the details or the biography, but what tangibles are in the shooters history that demonstrate this murder spree could have been prevented, had his mindset been diagnosed?
It is all good and well to holler, “unstable sociopath.” His access to guns, in spite of the numerous liberal hurdles placed in everyone’s way, and his security guard status show that he passed enough “screening” with enough people to fool us on that matter.
This is sadness and grief; unstoppable sadness, unstoppable grief.
It’s almost like Mohammed himself had some issues.
His ardent followers are nothing, if not obedient.
They also take to guns like bees to honey. Which is why some people are asking for a gun ban. That’s the deadly combo: sociopath + access to weapons + religious extremism. Each of us here stresses one of the three, but it is all three. Imo, the sociopath part is most important.
I didn’t know you could upload Mad Libs to a teleprompter.
Did you hear about the Libertarian convention’s antics?
But what about the cultural values and baggage they carry with them? Senator Moynihan was a sociologist and he famously said “Over the course of my life I learned the conservative truth that it is the culture of a nation that determines its success.” And Michael Medved has noted that if a Jew, Buddhist, Catholic, Hindu or Protestant becomes more religious, the only concern most people would have is that it might hinder their career prospects. Only with Islam is there a concern that it might lead to violence up to mass murder.
In fact, every solider I have talked too who went to Iraq or Afganistain has told me that the more religious someone was over there, the more likely they were to support violence.
That was on a case by case basis.
Not even collectivists?
Clinton is sneakier. She wants to bring them here, where she can have them surrounded….
I’m from New England… I’ve always heard it as “Big League”.
Isn’t the definition of ‘home grow terrorist’ Islamists taking over our children and convincing them how wonderful ISIS is?
We don’t have any screening system that in any serious way examines Muslims from Islamic countries as possible terrorists, we are way too worried about offending them or oppressing them – so we search and scan 80 year old grandmothers to keep it ‘fair’. Since this is one of Trumps long time positions, it should not surprise anyone, and is hardly “overblown fear mongering”…
What is overblown in this statement is not Trumps concerns relating to radical Islam, but your need to criticize Trump even after he gives a very impressive speech. Can’t let yourself agree with him too much, eh?
At this point, would it not be best to praise Trump and support him when he is on point, rather than search for ways to undermine him? Unless, of course, Hillary is your candidate?
Given the number of NeverTrump posts and comments stating that Trump will be a fascist dictator or will cause nuclear war, yeah a generic Republican position is something that this Reluctant Trump voter can appreciate.
The most vocal expectations of Trump are that he will be great or he will be the end of the Country/ World. The expectations, like this whole campaign, are all over the place.
At least he didn’t cry. Maybe I’m not very kind, but I find the emotive responses more attempts at manipulation than true feelings of overwhelming sadness. I have never cried about people I never knew, including celebrities and the famous that die that I really liked. I never cried about Princess Di, or Michael Jackson, etc. I find their deaths sad and premature, but have never been moved to tears.
And these same people will undoubtedly scream the loudest if she wins and begins appointing her liberals to the Supreme Court. Her election will have seriously bad consequences for our side for many years to come.
Amen.
So, how did that gun ban work out in Paris?
It’s a perfectly cromulent word.
Looks like Jon Gabriel, Ed beat me to it.
I’m still a fan of “refudiate,” by Sarah Palin.
Mike LaRoche:Unstable sociopaths take to Islam like bees to honey.
So do Muslims. Getcher head out of the sand.
That or politics.
No. What happened? Did they end up nominating a demagogic lunatic too?
I don’t know. Can’t compare an organized attack to lone wolf imo. There may be lone wolves in Paris unable to get guns, in which case some would say, it worked well thank you very much. For the record, I do not advocate a ban on guns.
Well played. :)
No, they ‘merely’ had the party chairman do a dance, while virtually naked
I was about to say “At least Republicans aren’t that crazy!”, but I think I’ll wait until the convention is over.
No just a run of the mill lunatic. You know, typical Libertarian candidate.
Too bad the vast majority of the Muslim world isn’t Libertarian.
No, just a man that is not sure we should have acted to stop Hitler or go to war with Japan after they attacked us.