Presidential election of 2020, riot of January 6, Carroll affair: ex-president Donald Trump rehashed lies and outrageous statements in the context of a televised exchange with voters in New Hampshire marking his return to the airwaves of the CNN channel , a day after he was found liable for sexual assault and defamation by a New York jury against a columnist.
The story so far
- For the first time since his election in 2016, former President Donald Trump made an appearance Wednesday evening on the CNN channel, which he often showered with insults.
- The televised exchange with New Hampshire voters was his first media appearance since being found guilty of sexual assault in a New York civil court on Tuesday.
- The choice of this state bordering Canada was no coincidence when New Hampshire is the first state to organize its Republican primaries in early 2024.
“It was a rigged election”
Unsurprisingly, the real estate tycoon once again struck out his lies about the “rigging” of the 2020 US presidential election. that no evidence had confirmed his claims to date. “Unless you are a stupid person, you saw what happened, it was a rigged election, and you saw it,” he repeated over and over.
A pardon for the Proud Boys?
In response to a question from a voter concerned about the fate reserved for the demonstrators who took over the Capitol on January 6, 2021 following a virulent speech by the former president, the latter indicated that he would be “inclined” to grant forgiveness to “most of them”. “Not all of them, because some of them exaggerated,” he nevertheless took care to specify. He did not go so far as to say whether the four members of the far-right group Proud Boys convicted of seditious conspiracy for their participation in the demonstration would be entitled to this pardon.
Debt: an invitation to default
Donald Trump has also urged his former Republican colleagues to default on the debt unless they succeed in obtaining “massive” budget cuts from elected Democrats and President Joe Biden. “If they don’t give you massive cuts, you’re going to have to default,” he said, adding that “sooner or later” the United States will default. The two camps are engaged in a tussle to raise the US debt ceiling, a necessary maneuver so that the world’s largest economy can continue to pay its bills, its officials and its creditors.
“Drill, baby, drill”
How does Donald Trump plan to slow the inflation that is eating away at Americans’ wallets? asked a spectator. “Drill, baby, drill”, simply replied the contender for the position of candidate for the next presidential election, in reference to a famous Republican campaign slogan highlighting the exploitation of hydrocarbons. “We were energy independent, soon to be energy dominant: we were going to be bigger than Russia and Saudi Arabia combined, doubled…and those stupid fools put an end to it,” he said. sued by attacking the administration of President Joe Biden.
” Someone crazy ”
The television appearance came a day after a New York jury found that Trump had sexually assaulted and defamed columnist E. Jean Carroll. The ex-president again maintained on Wednesday evening that he did not know her, while attacking her head-on. “She’s crazy,” he said, among other things, which drew laughter from the crowd.
PHOTO SETH WENIG, ASSOCIATED PRESS
E. Jean Carroll leaving court on Tuesday
The end of the war in Ukraine in 24 hours
On maintaining military aid to Ukraine, Trump was reluctant, pointing out that the United States’ contribution to the war effort was greater than that of the European Union. If he were president, the conflict would be settled in “one day, 24 hours”, he also launched. Does he want victory for Ukraine or Russia? “I don’t think in terms of winning or losing. I want it to end,” he replies. He later added that Russian President Vladimir Putin “made a huge mistake, but he’s a smart guy.”
PHOTO SOFIIA GATILOVA, REUTERS ARCHIVES
Ukrainian soldiers at the front in Donetsk Oblast
The reversal of Roe v. wade
Asked repeatedly by the host about the possibility of him approving a nationwide abortion ban if ever a proposal lands on his desk, Donald Trump has each time evaded the question. Despite everything, he repeatedly took credit for the repeal of Roe v. wadea historic 1973 judgment recognizing the federal state’s constitutional power to protect the right to abortion, which was struck down last year by the United States Supreme Court.
“You’re a nasty person”
Although she has intervened on numerous occasions to underline the falsehood of several assertions of Donald Trump, the host of CNN Kaitlan Collins has not always been able to stem such a flood of falsehoods. “You are a nasty person” (You’re a nasty person, in English), she was answered by the candidate after having hounded him about the classified documents found in his residence in Mar-A-Lago.
PHOTO JOSEPH PREZIOSO, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Donald Trump supporters gathered in Manchester, New Hampshire on Wednesday
And the next election?
Will Donald Trump respect the results of the next election if he were to lose it for the second time in a row? “If I think it’s a fair election,” he replied, adding that “if I don’t win, this country will be in big trouble.”