International

Bandaged Trump gets rousing welcome at Republican convention after assassination attempt

Published

4 months ago

July 16, 2024

Former President Donald Trump

Bandaged Trump gets rousing welcome at Republican convention after assassination attempt

With a bandage strapped over one ear, Donald Trump made a triumphant return to the public eye on Monday evening at the Republican National Convention, receiving a rapturous welcome from thousands of supporters two days after an attempt on his life.

The former president entered into the convention arena in Milwaukee with a fist raised and to the strains of a live performance of “God Bless the USA”.

He then slowly walked through cheering crowds of delegates – some with tears in their eyes – before greeting key political allies and members of his family, including three of his children, but not his wife Melania.

At moments, the audience pumped their fists and called out “Fight! Fight! Fight!” – echoing Trump’s cry after a bullet grazed his ear at a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday.

The Republican nominee for November’s presidential contest is riding a wave of political momentum. The Democratic Party has been questioning 81-year-old Joe Biden’s candidacy following a poor debate performance last month, while Trump’s team has celebrated recent legal victories.

At the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, the former president listened to about an hour of speeches while sitting next to his running mate and vice-presidential candidate Ohio Senator JD Vance, whose place on the ticket for November’s election was announced only hours before.

Trump did not make a speech but at times appeared moved by the crowd of thousands. He bowed his head in prayer, and mouthed several times: “Thank you, everybody”.

Supporters and Republican delegates, some with tears in their eyes, had been waiting for hours for the former president’s appearance, which was not officially listed on the schedule for the opening day of the convention, but was widely expected.

Eventful first day

Donald Trump’s appearance was the highlight of an eventful first day of the Republican gathering in Wisconsin, one of six battleground states that will decide the election.

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Before the convention officially opened, news broke that a federal judge had dismissed criminal charges against Trump for stashing more than 300 classified documents at his Florida resort after his first term in office.

Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, ruled that special prosecutor Jack Smith was unlawfully appointed to his role and did not have the authority to bring a 37-count indictment against the former president.

It was another victory for the Republican candidate, who now faces no prospect of another criminal trial before Americans go to the polls on 5 November.

Soon after the convention opened, nearly 2,500 Republican delegates formally nominated Trump as their presidential candidate during a roll call vote.

Vance picked as running mate

In a break with recent tradition, Trump waited until the convention to announce Mr Vance as his vice-presidential pick, and revealed his choice on his Truth Social network on Monday afternoon.

The Ohio senator and author of best-selling memoir Hillbilly Elegy reportedly heard he was selected just minutes before the announcement.

He smiled and looked slightly in awe as he walked into the crowd along with his wife Usha, and chatted with the throngs of delegates who surrounded him.

“Of the three [contenders] on the shortlist, I don’t think you could have done better,” said Greg Simpson, a Republican delegate who lives not far from Vance’s childhood home in Middletown, Ohio.

But Democrats indicated they would make an issue of Mr Vance’s anti-abortion views and connections to big tech during his career as a venture capitalist.

Democratic President Joe Biden said in a message posted on X that Mr Vance “talks a big game about working people” but would raise taxes on ordinary Americans while cutting taxes on the rich.

Speaking to reporters he called Mr Vance “a clone of Trump”.

The president also sat for an interview with NBC News, saying it was a mistake to have said it’s “time to put Trump in the bullseye” during a call with donors days before his political rival was nearly killed.

But he blamed his opponent for ratcheting up political rhetoric for his denials of the 2020 election result, promises to pardon the rioters who attacked the Capitol on 6 January 2021 and for joking about a serious assault on the husband of Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi.

As Trump remains in Milwaukee and prepares to deliver his closing night convention speech on Thursday night, Mr Biden has resumed his election campaign, flying to Las Vegas for events after a brief pause in rallies following the attack.

Bandaged Trump gets rousing welcome at Republican convention after assassination attempt

BBC

Related Topics:assassination attempt Republican convention Trump

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International

Israeli strikes pound central Beirut, suburbs

Published

10 hours ago

November 26, 2024

Trends Admin

Israeli strikes pound central Beirut, suburbs

BEIRUT: Israeli strikes pounded a densely-populated part of the Lebanese capital and its southern suburbs on Tuesday, hours ahead of an anticipated announcement of a ceasefire ending hostilities between Israel and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.

A strike on Beirut hit the Noueiri district with no evacuation warning and killed at least one person, Lebanon’s health ministry said in a preliminary toll.

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Minutes later, at least 10 Israeli strikes hit Beirut’s southern suburbs. They began approximately 30 minutes after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders for 20 locations in the area, the largest such warning yet.

As the strikes were under way, Israel’s military spokesperson Avichay Adraee said the air force was conducting a “widespread attack” on Hezbollah targets across the city.

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International

Over $100m wasted, Trump mocks Democrats for targeting him

Published

11 hours ago

November 26, 2024

Trends Admin

President-elect Donald Trump

Over $100m wasted, Trump mocks Democrats for targeting him

Former U.S. President Donald Trump has fiercely criticised the legal cases brought against him, calling them “empty and lawless”.

He accused Democrats of weaponising the judicial system to target him as a political opponent.

In a strongly worded statement, Trump alleged that over $100 million in taxpayer money had been wasted in what he described as a politically driven effort to undermine his influence.

“Nothing like this has ever happened in our Country before,” he said, pointing to high-profile prosecutors, including Georgia’s Fani Willis and New York Attorney General Letitia James, as key figures in what he called a “political hijacking.”

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Trump also accused Willis of colluding with Nathan Wade, whom he described as “her lover” and lacking the experience to handle such cases.

He claimed Wade was paid “millions,” allegedly enabling lavish trips and cruises.

Letitia James, who is pursuing a civil fraud case against Trump, was also criticised.

Over $100m wasted, Trump mocks Democrats for targeting him

International

US-based Nigerians get 30-year sentence over $3.5m romance scam

Published

11 hours ago

November 26, 2024

Trends Admin

US-based Nigerians get 30-year sentence over $3.5m romance scam

A United States federal jury sentenced two Nigerians, Anthony Ibekie and Samuel Aniukwu, to 30 years in prison for scamming certain US citizens $3,500,000.

This was mentioned in a news statement made public on the US Department of Justice website on Monday.

According to the statement, the Nigerians, Ibekie and Aniukwu mislead their victims by informing them that they had received big inheritances that required payment to claim.

The couple would then ask their victims to transfer money, promising to refund them after the inheritances were claimed.

It also stated that the duo carried out romance scams by establishing romantic relationships with their victims and demanding them to send money after they had built trust in their victims.

It read, “An undercover law enforcement investigation has resulted in federal prison sentences for two Nigerian nationals residing in the Chicago suburbs who conducted online inheritance scams and other fraud schemes.

“Using aliases, Anthony Emeka Ibekie and Samuel Aniukwu communicated with victims throughout the United States, convincing them they had received substantial inheritances and needed to send money to individuals associated with the defendants in order to claim it.

“In addition to the inheritance scam, the pair carried out an online romance scam that involved communicating with victims via social media and dating websites, building trust with the victims through a purported online romance, and convincing them to send money to a predetermined recipient. Aniukwu and Ibekie also orchestrated a ‘business email compromise’ scam that targeted corporate email accounts.

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“The fraud schemes were uncovered by a covert law enforcement investigation. The scams resulted in losses to victims of at least $3.5 million.”

According to the statement, after being arraigned on 14 charges, the duo pleaded guilty to their different alterations.

Following their guilty pleas, Ibekie was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Thursday, and Aniukwu was sentenced to 10 years in prison on November 8.

The statement continued, “A federal jury earlier this year convicted Ibekie, 59, of Oswego, Illinois, on all 14 counts of wire fraud, mail fraud, money laundering, making false statements to a bank, and passport fraud. U.S. District Judge Steven C. Seeger on Thursday sentenced Ibekie to 20 years in federal prison.

“Aniukwu, 50, of Romeoville, Illinois, pleaded guilty last year to wire fraud and money laundering charges. Judge Seeger on Nov. 8, 2024, sentenced Aniukwu to 10 years in prison.”

Meanwhile, Jennifer Gosha, an accomplice of the Nigerians and a US citizen, is expected to be sentenced on December 18 after pleading guilty.

“A third defendant, Jennifer Gosha, 52, a U.S. citizen from Oak Park, Ill., pleaded guilty earlier this year to charges of wire fraud and making false statements to a federal agent. Gosha is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Seeger on December 18, 2024,” the statement concluded.