DONALD Trump has insisted he is entitled to personal attacks on his rival Kamala Harris after warnings from allies that urge him to focus his rallies on her policies.
Campaign allies are concerned Trump is self-sabotaging his chance at a second White House term as he continues beating the same drum during his second presser in less than a week.
Trump appeared seemingly deflated as he spoke to reporters from his golf club in New Jersey while holding a script in his right hand.
The former president was flanked by grocery items including Folgers and Maxwell House coffee, Jimmy Dean sausage, and Honey Bunches of Oats while standing at the podium to highlight growing food costs.
“Day one for her was really three and a half years ago, why hasn’t she done it,” Trump said regarding Harris saying inflation was a “day one” priority.
Though the former president’s team has been urging talk of policies in place of namecalling, Trump shared he was “entitled” to personal attacks on Harris because of the way she has treated him and the country.
“As far as the personal attacks, I’m angry at her for what she’s done to the country. I’m very angry at her that she’d weaponize the justice system against me and other people, very angry at her,” he said on Thursday.
“I think I’m entitled to personal attacks. I don’t have a lot of respect for her. I don’t have a lot of respect for her intelligence. I think she’ll be a terrible president. I think it’s very important that we win.”
He also addressed being called “weird” by Harris and her running mate Governor of Minnesota Tim Walz.
“Whether the personal attacks are good or bad. Well, she certainly attacks me personally. She actually called me weird, ‘He’s weird,'” he said.
“It was just a soundbite and she called JD and I weird.
“He’s not weird, he was a great student at Yale he went to Ohio State, graduated in two years, at the top of his class.”
Trump then slammed Walz saying he runs a “failed state” and has a “terrible career.”
“You have him saying, ‘They’re weird.’ No, he’s a weird guy and she’s weird in her policy,” Trump affirmed.
‘CHOOSING TO LOSE’
Trump’s allies are concerned about the former president’s methods to win back the White House, urging a shift in tactics.
Sources close to Trump shared why they thought he seemed all over the place at recent rallies as the presidential election grows closer.
Trump’s main policy points
DONALD Trump closed the Republican National Convention on July 18, telling supporters he wanted to become president for “all Americans.
- Implementing tax cuts, including no tax on tips
- Protecting Social Security and Medicare – Trump said ‘incomes will skyrocket and the middle class will prosper like never before’
- Protecting borders – He pledged to end the ‘border nightmare.’ That means two things on day one – ‘Drill baby Drill,’ as he said, and close the borders
- Finishing building the wall
- Keeping our ‘sons and daughters safe’
- Replenishing the military and building a military ‘dome’ – Trump insisted he could stop wars with just a phone call and said no military would be able to penetrate the USA if he came into office
- Ending the war in Ukraine and imposing tariffs on Iran
- Vowing to “beat” China
- Working to decrease prices and ease inflation
- Bringing down the cost of energy
- Making cities ‘safe, clean and beautiful’ again
- Making it possible for Americans to buy gas-run cars by ending the electric vehicle mandate on the first day of his presidency
“It’s like he’s choosing to lose,” a Republican source close to Trump’s campaign reportedly told Vanity Fair.
As Kamala and Walz continue to campaign, allies close to Trump have reportedly told him to switch gears.
Instead of attacking Harris with nicknames such as “Lyin’ Kamala” or “Kamabla,” his team and former aides are urging him to address her policies.
“I do think it’s counterproductive to call her stupid,” a Trump insider said to Vanity Fair on Harris.
Former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley also took a stand on the concerns telling Trump and his supporters to “quit whining” about Harris’ lack of interviews.
Haley, who endorsed the former president despite previously saying she wouldn’t, advised Trump so he could win in November.
“We knew it was going to be her. She’s not going to give an interview,” Haley said on Fox News.
“They’re going to hold out as long as they can. That’s their right. They can do it. That doesn’t mean we can’t talk about what she believes in. And we should be getting out there and doing that.”
Haley said she “takes [Harris] at her word” and Republicans “don’t need” an interview with Harris.
She also advised Trump to “campaign every single day” and to win, he’s “got to go out and do the work.”
‘WORST BORDER CZAR IN HISTORY’
During his presser on Thursday, Trump continued to lash out about Harris‘ time as vice president and her work as border czar at the US–Mexico southern border.
“I hear her complaining all the time. She was the border czar, but she didn’t do anything,” he added.
“The worst border czar in history. There’s never been a border czar so bad.”
Trump said Harris will be easier to beat at the polls while claiming the vice president and the Democratic Party forced Joe Biden to end his reelection campaign.
“I believe she’ll be just as bad. I believe in many ways she’s going to be worse,” he added.
“He wasn’t really a radical left, but she is, she’s real. He wasn’t real. So, I think she’s going to be, in many ways, easier to beat than Joe Biden.
“What they did to him was disgraceful, by the way. And, it really is a threat to democracy. It was a coup by people who wanted him out.
“And they didn’t do not the way it was supposed to do.”
NEW SECURITY PLAN
Trump’s presser comes as the Secret Service revealed a new security plan for the former commander-in-chief after he survived an assassination attempt on July 13.
The former president’s ear was grazed by a bullet during an outdoor campaign event in Butler, Pennsylvania.
A Secret Service official told The Washington Post that the new plan will surround Trump with bulletproof glass at outdoor events.
The government agency told the outlet that additional technical security measures would be implemented to protect Trump.
However, details about the protection assets were not immediately disclosed.
Vice President Harris will also be granted similar protection if warranted, according to the outlet.