Milwaukee: Indian-origin former UN ambassador Nikki Haley, who was the last Republican competing against ex-US President Donald Trump for the November presidential election, strongly endorsed the party nominee for the upcoming elections in a show of unity at the second day of the Republican National Convention. "I will start by making one thing perfectly clear. Donald Trump has my strong endorsement," she said in her opening remarks.
The 52-year-old Republican never seriously challenged the former president for the party's presidential nomination, winning only one state and the District of Columbia before ending her campaign. However, her fierce attacks on his character and competence in the final months of her campaign made Haley the standard bearer for the dwindling anti-Trump wing of the Republican Party.
Once describing the ex-President as 'unelectable' and 'unfit', Haley now strongly endorsed his candidacy for the November elections, urging her supporters to vote for him over Democratic President Joe Biden "for the sake of our nation." This came three days after Trump survived an assassination attempt in Pennsylvania, an attack that shook the nation and changed the presidential campaign in America.
During her speech at the mega party event, Haley said the US would be badly worse off if US President Joe Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris won four more years at the White House. She also acknowledged some differences with Trump, but said people did not have to agree with him 100 per cent to vote for him.
"We have a country to save, and a unified Republican Party is essential for saving her. When Barack Obama was president, Vladimir Putin invaded Crimea. With Joe Biden as president, Putin invaded all of Ukraine. But when Donald Trump was president, Putin did nothing. No invasions, no wars. Putin didn’t attack Ukraine because he knew Donald Trump was tough. A strong president doesn’t start wars. A strong president prevents them," she said.
She also highlighted other achievements, including the US withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran. "Under Joe Biden, migrants are coming into our country by the thousands every day. We have no idea who they are, where they end up, or what they plan to do... Under Donald Trump, we didn’t have the border disaster we have today. And we won’t when he is president again," she said.
Republicans unite in favour of Trump
Haley pushed for a unified party to be strong and save America. "Our foreign enemies win when they see Americans hate each other. They see that today, whether it’s on college campuses or in a field in Butler, Pennsylvania. But we can conquer those fears with strength and unity," she added. Her rousing speech was met with a thunderous applause and a standing ovation by Trump and his vice presidential running mate JD Vance.
Another former Republican rival of Trump, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, was among the Republicans who came out in support of the party's presidential candidates. "We need a commander in chief who can lead 24 hours a day and seven days a week. America cannot afford four more years of a ‘Weekend at Bernie’s’ presidency," he said at the convention. His remarks also received standing ovations from the crowd, which included Donald Trump himself.
Indian-origin entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who also ran against Trump, said, "If you want to restore Law and Order in the country, vote for Trump. If you want to reunite the economy in the country, vote for Trump...If you want to make America great again, vote for Trump... he is the President who will actually UNITE this country. Not through empty words, but action. Success is unifying. Excellence is unifying. That’s who we are as Americans." His speech was also endorsed by X owner Elon Musk.
"We are the country where we can disagree like hell and still get together at the dinner table at the end of it. That is the America I know. That is the America we miss... Our message to the Gen Z is this: You’re going to be the generation that actually saves our country. You want to be a rebel? Show up on your college campus and try calling yourself a conservative. Say you want to get married, have kids, and teach them to pledge allegiance to your country."
Biden resumes criticism of Trump
The show of harmony was intended to contrast with the Democratic Party, which has spent weeks mired in intraparty tensions over whether Biden, 81, should abandon his reelection bid after his halting June 27 debate performance against Trump, 78, raised fresh questions about his age and mental acuity.
Meanwhile, Biden promised Black voters on Tuesday that he was "all in" to seek reelection on November 5 and assailed Donald Trump's record as president, in his first political speech since his Republican rival's attempted assassination. "Let me say it again because Trump is lying like hell about it - Black unemployment hit a record low under the Biden-Harris administration," Biden said.
"Just because we must lower the temperature and our politics is related to violence, it doesn't mean we should stop telling the truth. Who you are, what you've done, what you'll do, that's fair game... More children in America die of gunshot wounds than any other reason that is stunning and that is sick and it's sheer cowardice if we do nothing about it. If you want to stand against violence in America, then join me in getting these weapons of war off the streets of America," he said in Las Vegas, Nevada.
On Sunday, Biden used the formal setting of the White House Oval Office to ask Americans to lower the political temperature, recommit themselves to resolving their differences peacefully. He said the November presidential election will be a "time of testing." He later said it was a mistake for him to use the term "bullseye" in reference to Trump during a recent donor campaign call.
(with inputs from Reuters)
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