Opinions
Jerry Falwell Jr. is president of Liberty University.
In the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections, American
voters were forced to choose between a liberal Democrat and weak establishment
Republicans. Democrats won both times. In the 2010 and 2014 midterms, tired of
the leftist agenda, voters sent an unmistakable message to Washington:
Republicans took control of the Senate and filled more seats in the House than
at any time since 1929. Still, nothing changed.
In 2016, we have a clear choice.
This moment is historic because Donald Trump is not
another establishment Republican.
We have lived through nearly eight years of weak
leadership from a president who did not sign the charter to create the Islamic
State but whose policies had the intended or unintended effect (we will be
debating that for decades) of breathing life into the lungs of the terrorist
group. President Obama and Hillary Clinton most definitely signaled to Islamic
State leaders that they had no intention of seriously challenging them, or even
of calling radical Islamic terrorism by its name. Instead, Obama and Clinton
pulled our troops out of Iraq, drew and then quickly erased a red line in Syria
and tried to convince us that unverifiable pinpoint drone strikes (after leaflet
warnings) would win the war against the Islamic State.
All of this was enabled by a feckless establishment
Republican Congress.
The policies of Obama and Clinton have made the world
unstable and unsafe and created a world stage eerily similar to that of the
late 1930s. We could be on the precipice of international conflict like nothing
we have seen since World War II. Obama and Clinton are the Neville Chamberlains
of our time. The deal to make $150 billion available to Iran, the leading state
sponsor of terrorism in the world and a nation committed to the destruction of
Israel, clearing the way for Iran to become a nuclear power, reminds me of
Chamberlain’s deal with Hitler in 1938, when the British prime minister
declared “peace for our time.”
Domestically, Obama and Clinton have pushed to $19
trillion the debt that our children and grandchildren will somehow have to find
a way to repay. Even our noble law enforcement has been demonized by the Obama
administration, and anarchy is erupting in our cities.
Thank God we now have the opportunity to elect a strong
leader, one who is not afraid to call the enemy by its name and to take the
battle to that enemy if necessary.
We need fresh and bold leadership. Continuing the
policies of Obama and Clinton internationally and domestically would be the
definition of insanity: repeating the same mistakes over and over and expecting
a different result.
I chose to personally support Donald Trump for president
early on and referred to him as America’s blue-collar billionaire at the
Republican National Convention because of his love for ordinary Americans and
his kindness, generosity and bold leadership qualities. My family has grown to
love all of the Trumps because they are wonderful people willing to sacrifice
much for their country. The public perception of Trump that has been created by
the media is simply false.
We are at a crossroads where our first priority must be
saving our nation. We need a leader with qualities that resemble those of
Winston Churchill, and I believe that leader is Donald Trump. As Churchill did,
Trump possesses the resolve to put his country first and to never give up in a
world that is increasingly hostile to our values.
Despite our differences, Americans from all walks of life
must unite behind Trump and Indiana Gov. Mike Pence or suffer dire
consequences. If Clinton appoints the next few Supreme Court justices, not only
will the Second Amendment right to bear arms be effectively lost, but also
activist judges will rewrite our Constitution in ways that would make it
unrecognizable to our founders.
And this country will have as its president a person who
jeopardized our national security by negligently sending and receiving
classified emails on a private server and then repeatedly making inaccurate
statements about it, all while her family’s foundation accepted millions of
dollars in donations from foreign countries. Will time reveal the quid pro quo?
Our nation’s future truly hangs in the balance.
Republicans such as Sen. Susan Collins (Maine) need to stop whining about
Trump’s temperament and start focusing on Clinton’s corruption. (As far as I am
concerned, the credibility of anyone who ignores Clinton’s temperament while
attacking Trump’s is suspect anyhow.) It is naïve or deceptive for conservatives
to claim that a write-in vote or a third-party vote will not benefit Clinton.
A vote for Donald Trump and Mike Pence is a vote for more
freedom and less government, a vote for national security and responsible
immigration policy, a vote to finally fight radical Islamic terrorism. It is a
vote to rebuild America’s respect overseas and a vote for
strict-constructionist and pro-life Supreme Court justices. Remember when Iran
held American hostages for 444 days, only to release them the day Ronald Reagan
took office? Expect those kinds of results under Donald Trump’s leadership.
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FULL SPEECH: Donald Trump in battleground North Carolina
By The Hill staff
Thank you. It’s great to be here in Charlotte. I just met
with our many amazing employees right up the road at our property.
I’d like to take a moment to talk about the heartbreak
and devastation in Louisiana, a state that is very special to me.
We are one nation. When one state hurts, we all hurt –
and we must all work together to lift each other up. Working, building,
restoring together.
Our prayers are with the families who have lost loved
ones, and we send them our deepest condolences. Though words cannot express the
sadness one feels at times like this, I hope everyone in Louisiana knows that
our country is praying for them and standing with them to help them in these
difficult hours.
We are one country, one people, and we will have together
one great future.
Tonight, I’d like to talk about the New American Future
we are going to create together.
Last week, I laid out my plan to bring jobs back to our
country.
On Monday, I laid out my plan to defeat Radical Islamic
Terrorism.
On Tuesday, in Wisconsin, I talked about how we are going
to restore law and order to this country.
Let me take this opportunity to extend our thanks and our
gratitude to the police and law enforcement officers in this country who have
sacrificed so greatly in these difficult times.
The chaos and violence on our streets, and the assaults
on law enforcement, are an attack against all peaceful citizens. If I am
elected President, this chaos and violence will end – and it will end very
quickly.
Every single citizen in our land has a right to live in
safety.
To be one united nation, we must protect all of our
people. But we must also provide opportunities for all of our people.
We cannot make America Great Again if we leave any
community behind.
Nearly Four in ten African-American children are living
in poverty. I will not rest until children of every color in this country are
fully included in the American Dream.
Jobs, safety, opportunity. Fair and equal representation.
This is what I promise to African-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, and all
Americans.
But to achieve this New American Future we must break
from the failures of the past.
As you know, I am not a politician. I have worked in
business, creating jobs and rebuilding neighborhoods my entire adult life. I’ve
never wanted to learn the language of the insiders, and I’ve never been
politically correct – it takes far too much time, and can often make more
difficult.
Sometimes, in the heat of debate and speaking on a
multitude of issues, you don’t choose the right words or you say the wrong
thing. I have done that, and I regret it, particularly where it may have caused
personal pain. Too much is at stake for us to be consumed with these issues.
But one thing I can promise you is this: I will always
tell you the truth.
I speak the truth for all of you, and for everyone in
this country who doesn’t have a voice.
I speak the truth on behalf of the factory worker who
lost his or her job.
I speak the truth on behalf of the Veteran who has been
denied the medical care they need – and so many are not making it. They are
dying.
I speak the truth on behalf of the family living near the
border that deserves to be safe in their own country but is instead living with
no security at all.
Our campaign is about representing the great majority of
Americans – Republicans, Democrats, Independents, Conservatives and Liberals –
who read the newspaper, or turn on the TV, and don’t hear anyone speaking for
them. All they hear are insiders fighting for insiders.
These are the forgotten men and women in our society, and
they are angry at so much on so many levels. The poverty, the unemployment, the
failing schools, the jobs moving to other countries.
I am fighting for these forgotten Americans.
Fourteen months ago, I declared my campaign for the
Presidency on the promise to give our government back to the people. Every day
since then, I’ve worked to repay the loyalty and the faith that you have put in
me.
Every day I think about how much is at stake for this
country. This isn’t just the fight of my life, it’s the fight of our lives –
together – to save our country.
I refuse to let another generation of American children
be excluded from the American Dream. Our whole country loses when young people
of limitless potential are denied the opportunity to contribute their talents
because we failed to provide them the opportunities they deserved. Let our
children be dreamers too.
Our whole country loses every time a kid doesn’t graduate
from high school, or fails to enter the workforce or, worse still, is lost to
the dreadful world of drugs and crime.
When I look at the failing schools, the terrible trade
deals, and the infrastructure crumbling in our inner cities, I know all of this
can be fixed - and it can be fixed very quickly.
In the world I come from, if something is broken, you fix
it.
If something isn’t working, you replace it.
If a product doesn’t deliver, you make a change.
I have no patience for injustice, no tolerance for
government incompetence, no sympathy for leaders who fail their citizens.
That’s why I am running: to end the decades of bitter
failure and to offer the American people a new future of honesty, justice and
opportunity. A future where America, and its people, always – and I mean always
– come first.
Aren’t you tired of a system that gets rich at your
expense?
Aren’t you tired of the same old lies and the same old
broken promises? And Hillary Clinton has proven to be one of the greatest liars
of all time.
Aren’t you tired of arrogant leaders who look down on
you, instead of serving and protecting you?
That is all about to change – and it’s about to change
soon. We are going to put the American people first again.
I’ve travelled all across this country laying out my bold
and modern agenda for change.
In this journey, I will never lie to you. I will never
tell you something I do not believe. I will never put anyone’s interests ahead
of yours.
And, I will never, ever stop fighting for you.
I have no special interest. I am spending millions of
dollars on my own campaign – nobody else is.
My only interest is the American people.
So while sometimes I can be too honest, Hillary Clinton
is the exact opposite: she never tells the truth. One lie after another, and
getting worse each passing day.
The American people are still waiting for Hillary Clinton
to apologize for all of the many lies she’s told to them, and the many times
she’s betrayed them.
Tell me, has Hillary Clinton ever apologized for lying
about her illegal email server and deleting 33,000 emails?
Has Hillary Clinton apologized for turning the State
Department into a pay-for-play operation where favors are sold to the highest
bidder?
Has she apologized for lying to the families who lost
loved ones at Benghazi?
Has she apologized for putting Iran on the path to
nuclear weapons?
Has she apologized for Iraq? For Libya? For Syria? Has
she apologized for unleashing ISIS across the world?
Has Hillary Clinton apologized for the decisions she made
that have led to so much death, destruction and terrorism?
Speaking of lies, we now know from the State Department
announcement that President Obama lied about the $400 million dollars in cash
that was flown to Iran. He denied it was for the hostages, but it was. He said
we don’t pay ransom, but he did. He lied about the hostages – openly and
blatantly – just like he lied about Obamacare.
Now the Administration has put every American travelling
overseas, including our military personnel, at greater risk of being kidnapped.
Hillary Clinton owns President Obama’s Iran policy, one more reason she can
never be allowed to be President.
Let’s talk about the economy. Here, in this beautiful
state, so many people have suffered because of NAFTA. Bill Clinton signed the
deal, and Hillary Clinton supported it. North Carolina has lost nearly half of
its manufacturing jobs since NAFTA went into effect.
Bill Clinton also put China into the World Trade
Organization – another Hillary Clinton-backed deal. Your city of Charlotte has
lost 1 in 4 manufacturing jobs since China joined the WTO, and many of these
jobs were lost while Hillary Clinton was Secretary of State – our chief
diplomat with China. She was a disaster, totally unfit for the job.
Hillary Clinton owes the State of North Carolina a very
big apology, and I think you’ll get that apology around the same time you’ll
get to see her 33,000 deleted emails.
Another major issue in this campaign has been the border.
Our open border has allowed drugs and crime and gangs to pour into our
communities. So much needless suffering, so much preventable death. I’ve spent
time with the families of wonderful Americans whose loved ones were killed by
the open borders and Sanctuary Cities that Hillary Clinton supports.
I’ve embraced the crying parents who’ve lost their
children to violence spilling across our border. Parents like Laura Wilkerson
and Michelle Root and Sabine Durden and Jamiel Shaw whose children were killed
by illegal immigrants.
My opponent supports Sanctuary Cities.
But where was the Sanctuary for Kate Steinle? Where was
the Sanctuary for the children of Laura, Michelle, Sabine and Jamiel?
Where was the Sanctuary for every other parent who has
suffered so horribly?
These moms and dads don’t get a lot of consideration from
our politicians. They certainly don’t get apologies. They’ll never even get the
time of day from Hillary Clinton.
But they will always come first to me.
Listen closely: we will deliver justice for all of these
American Families. We will create a system of immigration that makes us all
proud.
Hillary Clinton’s mistakes destroy innocent lives,
sacrifice national security, and betray the working families of this country.
Please remember this: I will never put personal profit
before national security. I will never leave our border open to appease donors
and special interests. I will never support a trade deal that kills American
jobs. I will never put the special interests before the national interest. I
will never put a donor before a voter, or a lobbyist before a citizen.
Instead, I will be a champion for the people.
The establishment media doesn’t cover what really matters
in this country, or what’s really going on in people’s lives. They will take
words of mine out of context and spend a week obsessing over every single
syllable, and then pretend to discover some hidden meaning in what I said.
Just imagine for a second if the media spent this energy
holding the politicians accountable who got innocent Americans like Kate
Steinle killed – she was gunned down by an illegal immigrant who had been
deported five times.
Just imagine if the media spent this much time
investigating the poverty and joblessness in our inner cities.
Just think about how much different things would be if
the media in this country sent their cameras to our border, or to our closing
factories, or to our failing schools. Or if the media focused on what dark
secrets must be hidden in the 33,000 emails Hillary Clinton deleted.
Instead, every story is told from the perspective of the
insiders. It’s the narrative of the people who rigged the system, never the
voice of the people it’s been rigged against.
So many people suffering in silence. No cameras, no
coverage, no outrage from a media class that seems to get outraged over just
about everything else.
So again, it’s not about me. It’s never been about me.
It’s about all the people in this country who don’t have a voice.
I am running to be their voice.
I am running to be the voice for every forgotten part of
this country that has been waiting and hoping for a better future.
I am glad that I make the powerful a little uncomfortable
now and again – including some powerful people in my own party. Because it
means I am fighting for real change.
There’s a reason the hedge fund managers, the financial
lobbyists, the Wall Street investors, are throwing their money at Hillary
Clinton. Because they know she will make sure the system stays rigged in their
favor.
It’s the powerful protecting the powerful.
The insiders fighting for the insiders.
I am fighting for you.
Here is the change I propose.
On terrorism, we are going to end the era of
nation-building and instead focus on destroying ISIS and Radical Islamic
terrorism.
We will use military, cyber and financial warfare and
work with any partner in the world, and the Middle East, that shares our goal
of defeating terrorism. I have a message for the terrorists trying to kill our
citizens: we will find you, we will destroy you, and we will win.
On immigration, we will temporarily suspend immigration
from any place where adequate screening cannot be performed. All applicants for
immigration will be vetted for ties to radical ideology, and we will screen out
anyone who doesn’t share our values and love our people. Anyone who believes
Sharia law supplants American law will not be given an immigrant visa. If you
want to join our society, then you must embrace our society, our values and our
tolerant way of life. Those who believe in oppressing women, gays, Hispanics,
African-Americans and people of different faiths are not welcome to join our
country.
We will promote our America values, our American way of
life, and our American system of government which are all the best in the
world.
My opponent on the other hand wants a 550% increase in
Syrian refugees. Her plan would bring in roughly 620,000 refugees from all
refugee-sending nations in her first term, on top of all other immigration.
Hillary Clinton is running to be America’s Angela Merkel, and we’ve seen how
much crime and how many problems that’s caused the German people.
We have enough problems already, we don’t need another
one.
On crime, we are going to add more police, more
investigators, and appoint the best judges and prosecutors in the world. We
will pursue strong enforcement of federal laws.
The gangs and cartels and criminal syndicates terrorizing
our people will be stripped apart one by one. Their day is over.
On trade, we are going to renegotiate NAFTA, withdraw
from the TPP, stand up to China on our terrible trade agreement, and protect
every last American job.
Hillary Clinton has supported all of the major trade
deals that have stripped this country of its jobs and its wealth.
On taxes, we are going to massively cut tax rates for
workers and small businesses – creating millions of new good paying jobs.
We are going to get rid of regulations that send jobs
overseas and we are going to make it easier for young Americans to get the
credit they need to start a small business and pursue their dreams.
On education, we are going to give students choice, and
allow charter schools to thrive. We are going to end tenure policies that
reward bad teachers and hurt good ones. My opponent wants to deny students
choice and opportunity, all to get a little bit more money from the education
bureaucracy. She doesn’t care how many young dreams are dashed in the process.
We are going to work closely with African-American
parents and students in the inner cities – and what a big difference that will
make. This means a lot to me, and it is going to be a top priority in a Trump
Administration.
On healthcare, we are going to repeal and replace
Obamacare. Countless Americans have been forced into part-time jobs, premiums
are about to jump by double-digits yet again, and just this week Aetna
announced it is pulling out of the exchanges in North Carolina. We are going to
replace this disaster with reforms that give you choice and freedom and control
in healthcare – at a much lower cost.
On political corruption, we are going to restore honor to
our government.
In my Administration, I am going to enforce all laws
concerning the protection of classified information. No one will be above the
law.
I am going to forbid senior officials from trading favors
for cash by preventing them from collecting lavish speaking fees through their
spouses when they serve.
I am going to ask my senior officials to sign an
agreement not to accept speaking fees from corporations with a registered
lobbyist for five years after leaving office, or from any entity tied to a
foreign government.
Finally, we are going to bring this country together. We
are going to do it by emphasizing what we all have in common as Americans. We
are going to reject the bigotry of Hillary Clinton, which sees communities of
color only as votes and not as human beings worthy of a better future.
If African-American voters give Donald Trump a chance by
giving me their vote, the result for them will be amazing. Look at how badly
things are going under decades of Democratic leadership – look at the schools,
look at the 58% of young African-Americans not working. It is time for change.
What do you have to lose by trying something new? – I
will fix it. This means so much to me, and I will work as hard as I can to
bring new opportunity to places in our country which have not known opportunity
in a very long time.
Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party have taken
African-American votes totally for granted. Because the votes have been
automatically there, there has been no reason for Democrats to produce.
It is time to break with the failures of the past, and to
fight for every last American child in this country to have the better future
they deserve.
In my Administration, every American will be treated
equally, protected equally, and honored equally. We will reject bigotry and
hatred and oppression in all of its forms, and seek a new future built on our
common culture and values as one American people.
This is the change I am promising all of you: an honest
government, a fair economy, and a just society for each and every American.
But we can never fix our problems by relying on the same
politicians who created these problems in the first place.
72% of voters say our country is on the wrong track. I am
the change candidate, Hillary Clinton is the failed status quo.
It is time to vote for a New American Future.
Together, We Will Make America Strong Again.
We Will Make American Proud Again.
We Will Make America Safe Again.
Friends and fellow citizens: Come November, We Will Make
America Great Again.
Thank You, And God Bless.
