DONALD J. TRUMP JR.
REPUBLICAN NATIONAL CONVENTION
Fiserve Forum
Milwaukee, WI
July 17, 2024

[DEMOCRACY IN ACTION transcript |  C-SPAN video]

DONALD TRUMP JR.: Good evening, America. Before I begin my remarks, I'm going to do something a little uncharacteristic.

A Trump is going to give up the microphone. Doesn't happen often. You may never see it again. But I got a call on Monday morning from a young lady who said, Dad, I want to speak at the RNC. I want to speak at the RNC because I want America to know what my grandpa is actually like.

So for the first time ever on a stage, first time ever giving a speech, I want to bring out my eldest daughter and the eldest granddaughter of the President of the United States, your favorite president, Kai Madison Trump.


KAI TRUMP: Hi everyone. My name is Kai Madison Trump. I am the granddaughter of Donald Trump. I'm speaking today to share the side of my grandpa that people don't often see. To me he's just a normal grandpa. He gives us candy and soda when our parents aren't looking. He always wants to know how we're doing in school. When I made the high honor roll, he printed it out to show his friends how proud he was of me.

He calls me during the middle of the school day to ask how my golf game is going and tells me all about his, but then I have to remind him that I'm in school and I'll have to call him back later.

When we play golf together, if I'm not on his team, he'll try to get inside of my head. I know. And he's always surprised that I don't let him get to me. But I have to remind him, I'm a Trump too.

Even when he's going through all these court cases, he always asks me how I'm doing. He always encourages me to push myself to be the most successful person I can be. Obviously, he sets the bar pretty high, but who knows, maybe one day I'll catch him.

On Saturday, I was shocked when I heard that he has been shot, and I just wanted to know if he was okay. It was heartbreaking that someone would do that to another person. A lot of people have put my grandpa through hell, and he's still standing.

Grandpa, you are such an inspiration, and I love you.

The media make my grandpa seem like a different person, but I know him for who he is. He's very caring and loving. He truly wants the best for this country, and he will fight every single day to make America great again. Thank you very much.


DONALD TRUMP JR.: A lot of proud moments this week for my family. Thank you again guys, really appreciate that. That's not easy. That's the first time. I mean, this is what we call a, a large crowd for a speech. So incredible work, Kai.

Now back to business.

[shout from audience]

Thank you, sir.

Tonight we gather here in Milwaukee at one of the most crucial moments in American history. Just days ago, something that once seemed unimaginable became a terrifying reality. My father came under literal fire as an incredible patriotic rally turned into a tragedy. On a field in Butler, Pennsylvania, a brave firefighter died, others were injured, and as those bullets rained down, we came millimeters away from one of the darkest moments in our nation's history.

But we did lose an American hero that day. We wish that he were with us tonight, but his memory will live on forever in the hearts of his family, his community, and the nation that he loved.

So I would like to take just a moment tonight to express our gratitude for the life and service of American hero, Corey Comperatore.

[CHANTS: Corey]

They say you can't truly know how you'll respond in a moment of danger until you're actually confronted with it. So what was my father's instinct as his life was on the line? Not to cower, not to surrender, but to show for all the world to see that the next American president has the heart of a lion.

That the next American president has the courage to put the American people first once again. And in that moment, my father didn't just show his character, he showed America's character. When he stood up with blood on his face and the flag at his back, the world saw a spirit that could never be broken. And that is the true spirit of America.

America knows what it's like to be down. We know what it's like to be confused and to be afraid. Long before the attempt on my father's life, every American I met was filled with fear and anxiety. They were afraid our country was being torn apart. They were anxious about the massive and chaotic invasion of illegal aliens across our border. They were deeply concerned about partisan lawfare, education indoctrination, and attacks on freedom of speech. Most terrifying of all, they saw that our leaders didn't care, or worse, that they joyfully aided and abetted the erosion of our rights.

And the lies, oh yeah, the lies. We won't ever forget the lies. From left-wing politicians, from their allies in the media. When you hear them in a row, you fully understand the extent they have gone to divide this great nation.

They lied about Russia collusion. They lied about Hunter's laptop. They lied about Joe Biden's fitness for office. They lied about the border being secure. They lied about inflation being transitory. They lied about how they would safely withdraw from Afghanistan. They lied about Biden being a quote, moderate. And they told one nonstop lie after another about my father.

But they could only run away from reality for so long. All hell has broken loose in America, and it's impossible to hide anymore.

Remember, Build Back Better? Instead, we got Broke Bumbling Biden. Nothing is built, nothing is back, and nothing is better. Bridges are collapsing. Our credibility is crumbling. And our money is worth less and less every single day. It was just one giant bait and switch, and normal Americans are the ones left holding the bag.

Housing costs, gasoline prices, grocery bills just keep going up. Wave after wave of illegal aliens, deadly drugs keep pouring across our border. Meanwhile, pro-crime district attorneys have turned our cities into giant crime zones. They've turned criminals into victims, prosecutors into criminal defense attorneys, and police into public enemies. Left-wing activists are pretending to be educators, teaching our kids that there are 57 genders, but they can't even define what a woman is.

On one hand, they think free speech protects their right to expose your children to explicit drag shows. On the other hand, they want to put you in jail for making a meme. It's like the entire world has been turned upsidedown. Does any of this sound like a country that's going in the right direction? And honestly, who is actually running the country anyway? It's obviously not Joe Biden.

So who are they asking us to elect? Seriously? Who's running things? Does anyone really know? Is it Jill? Is it Hunter? Barack Obama? Maybe it's the ghost of Corn Pop.

Whoever is running the show, the only thing they are effective at is persecuting my father. They twisted, contorted, and corrupted the criminal code to turn bookkeeping errors into felonies. They concocted new legal theories out of thin air. They imposed gag orders on my father because the last thing a defendant should be able to do is defend himself, right? They punished him for merely speaking the truth.

They say they hate Vladimir Putin, but it sure seems like they spend a lot of time copying his playbook.

In this country, we don't criminalize political differences. We debate them, we vote on them, but we don't make you choose between picking a party or picking a jail cell.

There was a time when the Democrats really wanted what was best for America, even if they had a different way of getting there. It was the party of Franklin Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr.. You may have disagreed with that party, but at least you could respect it.

But this new extreme Democrat party, they want us to somehow believe that the only way forward is going backwards. Where hiring decisions based solely on race, where justice is only for those with the right opinions, where streets are a luxury only for the elite, where economic opportunity exists only when you know the right people.

Right now, the America we all grew up with, the America that we love, feels like an old photograph where you sit down with your children and tell them what life used to be like. You look back at that America and remember a country that was confident and proud, an America that knew who it was and what it stood for. And it can all feel like a distant memory. Somewhere along the way, we stumbled. Somewhere along the way, we lost ourselves.

But we can't live on nostalgia. Yes, America was great, but our greatest days are yet to come.

Because no matter how far off that old photo may feel, it's not the end of our story. We're like that man who stood on that platform and felt the bullet pierce his flesh just days ago in Pennsylvania.

He may have moved to the ground, but he stood back up.

And when he did, my father raised his fist into the air, he looked out at the crowd, and what did he say?

[CHANTS: Fight.]

And we will fight. We will fight. We will fight with our voices; we will fight with our ideas; and on November 5th, we will fight with our votes.

I've always been proud of him, but I've never been prouder of my father than I was in that moment. That's when the world found out that there is tough, and then there is Trump tough.

And the good news is America is Trump tough.

[CHANTS: Trump.]

In 1912, more than a century ago, another legendary Republican president came right here to Milwaukee. At a political rally less than one mile from where we stand tonight, Teddy Roosevelt was struck by a would-be assassin's bullet. But he didn't quit either. He finished his speech and he kept fighting. My friends, I don't believe in coincidences, but I do believe in God's plan.

Today, Teddy Roosevelt's man in the arena has a name, and it's Donald J. Trump.

Remember my father didn't have to run for re-election this year. He doesn't need the money, the fame, the power. Frankly, he doesn't need the witch hunts, the phony investigations, or the political prosecutions either, but he knew he had to run if there was any chance at saving America.

He's not doing it for himself. He's doing it for everyone here tonight, for everyone watching at home.

No matter who you are, you can be a part of this movement to make America great again. Look at me and my friend JD Vance. A kid from Appalachia and a kid from Trump Tower in Manhattan. We grew up worlds apart, yet now we're both fighting side by side to save the country we love.

And by the way, JD Vance is going to make one hell of a vice president.

[CHANTS: JD.]

For those of you who have tuned out politics or have never even voted, I want you to know, if you're looking for a better life, a more prosperous future, a safer, more wholesome and patriotic place to call home, there's room for you in this party and in this movement.

In fact, you're the ones who matter most of all.

My father has always said that the people he gets along with best are the people who really work for a living.

It's because of his background as a builder in construction. In construction, it doesn't matter how smart your architect is, if you don't have the best guys laying the bricks. People with grit; people who get their hands dirty.

That's a big problem with Washington, DC. Most of the bureaucrats who rule over us have never built anything in their lives. It's time to build something real, something tangible, something that will last and leave this country better off for our children. That's my father's mission.

This November we have a choice. It's a choice between one team that wants to build this country up, and another that wants to tear this country down. It's a choice between people who are proud of America, and people who are ashamed of America. And ultimately its a choice between America last and America first.

 So if you love this country from the bottom of your heart, if you want to bring back common sense, if you want to save the American dream, if you want to stand up and fight the future of our nation, you must reelect my father, Donald J. Trump,

Together, we will make America great once again. Thank you. Thank you, Wisconsin.