Trump says he could have 'done things' to Hillary Clinton 'that would have made your head spin'
In his remarks at Mar-a-Lago, Trump started talking about former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
"You know, with Hillary Clinton, I could have done things to her that would have made your head spin. I thought it was a very bad thing. Take the wife of a president of the United States and put her in jail," he said.
Trump said he was "very protective" of Hillary Clinton and falsely suggested that he would tamp down chants by his supporters to have her locked up.
"I was very protective of her. Nobody would understand that," Trump said. "But I was, I think, my people understand it. They used to say, 'Lock her up, lock her up,' and I'd say just relax, please. We won the election."
Trump says Harris isn't 'smart enough' to hold a news conference
Trump said Harris won't hold a news conference because she isn't "smart enough."
Trump, who has ramped up attacks on Harris' gender and race since she replaced Biden in the race for president, spent a lot of the news conference talking about Harris' intelligence.
"She doesn’t know how to do a news conference. She’s not smart enough to do a news conference, and I’m sorry. We need smart people to lead this country."
Trump: Harris had 'some good choices'
Trump referred to Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro as a "terrible guy."
"He's not very popular with anybody. I think that this, this election, maybe is better than Josh Shapiro would have been, but I think, other than Josh Shapiro, I think she had some good choices, but Josh Shapiro is not one of them," he said. "He's caused a lot of damage with a lot of people, and I don't think he would have been better. I think he would have been maybe the equivalent, maybe not as good. But they had some people that they were looking at that were good, far superior to her."
Trump says abortion will only be a ‘small issue’ in the general election
Trump said abortion has become “much less of an issue” in the 2024 campaign and would be a “very small issue” in the general election.
Trump incorrectly says no one was killed on Jan. 6, complains about media coverage of his crowd that day
Trump defended Jan. 6 defendants, saying they are being treated harshly. He also claimed, incorrectly, that "nobody was killed on Jan. 6."
Trump supporter Ashli Babbitt died after being shot by police while trying to enter a room connected to the House chamber. USCP Officer Brian Sicknick died after collapsing after defending the Capitol, a death later attributed to a stroke and ruled as in the line of duty by Capitol Police. Additionally, four police officers committed suicide after defending the Capitol, two Trump supporters outside the building had heart attacks and one died of an accidental overdose.
Trump, who has long complained that the press doesn't fairly portray the size of crowds at his campaign rallies, grumbled that the coverage of Jan. 6 doesn't note how large the crowd was when he spoke that day.
(After he told those assembled that he would join them in marching to the Capitol, the crowd moved down the street, and a mob attacked the building and violently assaulted police who were standing guard in a bid to stop certification of Trump's election defeat.)
Trump said during this press conference that the crowd he addressed that day on the Ellipse, an area in front of the White House, was "the biggest crowd I've ever spoken to."
Trump says photos from Jan. 6 don't accurately show how large the crowd was, comparing it to the crowd that attended Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech.
"All you see is the picture of a small number of people, relatively, going to the Capitol, but you never see the picture of the crowd," Trump said.
Inside Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort before his press conference
A podium is set up for the former president Donald to speak at his Florida resort.
Trump says he's agreed to three debates against Harris
Trump said in remarks to the press at Mar-a-Lago that his campaign has agreed to a presidential debate on Fox News on Sept. 4, one with NBC News on Sept. 10 and one with ABC News on Sept. 25.
The campaign later clarified that the ABC debate would be on Sept. 10 as previously scheduled and the NBC one would take place on Sept. 25.
In response to a question, Trump said his campaign would like to participate in three debates, though it was unclear if he was including the vice presidential debate, which he said will be hosted by CBS News.
NBC News has reached out to the Harris campaign, NBC, CBS and ABC.
Walz's DUI came up during the VP vetting process
Since he was selected as Harris' running mate, Walz' drunk driving arrest in 1995 has resurfaced. The incident wasn't a surprise to campaign officials, a source familiar with the matter said.
When former Labor Secretary Marty Walsh, a member of the vetting committee, asked Walz about the details of his drunk driving arrest in 1995, the governor said he had no excuses and had learned from the experience, and he hadn't drunk in decades.
The Star Tribune reported during Walz's first run for governor that he said the incident was his gut-check moment, and instead of alcohol he opts for Diet Mountain Dew (a well-known fun fact about him in Minnesota).
The source shot down a report that his openness about the incident “vaulted him to the top” of the VP list, but said that it did add to the appeal of picking him.
Bidens to meet with former campaign staff
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden will greet his former campaign staff members this evening to “show their gratitude for all their hard work” and to thank them in advance for their dedication to the Harris-Walz operation, a source familiar with the plans said.
The Bidens felt it was personally important for them to meet with aides in Wilmington, Delware, in person to express their appreciation, the source said. The gathering, which is closed to the news media, will take place at an event site and not at the now-Harris headquarters.
The campaign expects about 200 staffers to attend and they will be treated to food and drinks, including Biden’s signature dessert: ice cream.
The Bidens wanted to be able to find a time to thank the aides who uprooted their lives to move to Delaware and were so committed to seeing him re-elected, given how quickly everything has changed since the president’s decision to exit the 2024 race less than three week ago.
They will also have the opportunity to tell the campaign staff that there’s a lot of work to do in the months ahead and that they hope to be helpful leading up to the election, the source said.
The president and the first lady plan to spend a few hours with aides and advisers before heading to their beach house in Rehoboth, Delaware, for the weekend.
Democratic vets in Congress defend Walz's military record
Democratic veterans in the House rushed to Walz’s defense today — amid attacks from Republicans on the Minnesota governor's military record — and hit Trump over his lack of military service.
Republicans, including JD Vance, have attacked Walz in recent days over his military service.
Rep. Jason Crow, D-Colo., who did multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan as a U.S. Army Ranger, said Walz, who served in the National Guard for 24 years, had a “long and honorable service record."
Walz officially retired from the Minnesota National Guard in May 2005. His unit was alerted about a deployment to Iraq in July, and the unit deployed there in October. Walz filed to run for Congress in January 2005 with paperwork that was certified by the Federal Election Commission the next month.
“Contrast all of that with these old and tired attacks by the other side,” Crow said. “They just don’t have anything. They have no ideas. They have no options, but to try to do one of the worst things you can do in America: That is attack a veteran for their service. It’s old. It’s tired.”
“America is just not going to put up with it. And we’re not going to put up with it,” Crow said. “It’s not OK.”
Rep. Jake Auchincloss, D-Mass., who commanded troops in Afghanistan, hit Trump over having received a draft deferment in 1968 for bone spurs in his heels — allowing him to avoid serving during the Vietnam War.
“If I were Donald Trump, with five deferments from Vietnam … I would be very cautious about opening the door to attacks on those who served honorably,” Auchincloss said.
“They’re Swift-boating him,” he added — referring to the 2004 effort by Republicans who attacked then-Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry’s record as a Navy officer in Vietnam. “We’re just not going to stand for it.”
“I thank JD Vance for his service, but his political career and his political positions are antithetical to the values of veterans, and Donald Trump has a long track record of disparaging veterans. He called those who gave their last full measure of devotion losers.”
That comment was a reference to a 2020 report in The Atlantic that Trump had canceled a 2018 visit to an American cemetery near Paris because he felt that those who’d lost their lives and been buried there were “losers.” The magazine cited “four people with firsthand knowledge of those discussions.” Several media outlets confirmed the remarks, which Trump has denied. Trump’s former White House chief of staff John Kelly also said those specific comments were accurate.