RICHMOND, Va. — Presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump began his pivot to the general election Friday night. He focused his fire mostly on former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton now that she is the presumptive nominee of the Democratic Party.
While addressing an unusually small crowd in the Virginia capital, Trump directed his ire at Clinton in the wake of her winning the party’s nomination and the endorsement of President Obama. Except for a short attack against former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (“low energy”), Trump kept the focus on the Democrats, perhaps a sign of things to come as he looks toward November
“This Josh Earnest yesterday said ‘criminal investigation.’ He wasn’t supposed to say that. But if the system works, she’s really not allowed to run, folks. It’s that simple,” Trump said. “You have a president coming out and endorsing somebody that’s under criminal investigation … Is this supposed to be the way the country is supposed to be working? I don’t think so.”
Trump also weighed in on the status of Sen. Bernie Sanders’ campaign, who he said “looks like he’s about finished” after Clinton became the presumptive nominee, and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who lambasted Trump in a speech Thursday in Washington, in which she called him a “wannabe tyrant” and a “thin-skinned racist bully.” Trump, in kind, responded with a nickname-laden attack, calling her “the worst.”
“Pocahontas is not happy. She’s the worst,” Trump said as supporters did Indian war whoops in the crowd. “I’m doing such a disservice to Pocahontas — it’s so unfair … She’s one of the worst senators in the entire United States Senate. She’s gotten practically nothing done. Practically nothing passed. If it was up to her, you’d have taxes at 95 percent, and I hope she’s going to be chosen by Hillary. Oh, would that be great. I would love it.”
However, despite Trump’s critique of Clinton and Democrats, he couldn’t help but weigh in on other issues — particularly the #NeverTrump crowd’s continued opposition to him and his recent attacks against Judge Gonzalo Curiel.
“I am the least racist person that you’ve ever see,” Trump said, declining to weigh in further on the fury surrounding his comments, which have earned round condemnation from his Republican colleagues. However, supporters at the rally continue to worry about his inability to drop the issue of Curiel, leading them to worry about him going forward.
“He has his certain things I don’t like about him,” said Jeff Rutkowski, 45, who voted for John Kasich in the primary and is staunchly against Clinton. “I don’t think he should have [made the attacks]. There are certainly better ways of phrasing your argument.”
Troy Osterman, a Hanover, Va., native who voted for Trump in the March primary, took issue with Trump’s recent actions.
“His temperament. His ability to take criticism,” said Osterman, 49, when asked what worries him about Trump. “Sometimes, I wish he’d keep his mouth shut because he’s secured the nomination.”
“It’s not the smart thing to say,” he added about the judge attacks. “He’s running for president of the United States. He’s got to take it all in and not take his personal issues with him and his company into the campaign.”
The event was noteworthy for the relatively small crowdsize. Althought the Richmond Coliseum has the capacity for 12,000 people, only about 4,000 attended according to a state patrolman on duty. The campaign did not give out official attendance numbers.
The event was Trump’s first campaign rally and off-the-cuff comments since Clinton won the nomination. Earlier Friday, Trump spoke to the Faith and Freedom Coalition off a teleprompter. It was the second time of the week he did so, using one Tuesday during his primary night remarks in Westchester, N.Y.
