Former President Donald Trump leaned into faith in his speech addressing the National Religious Broadcasters Convention on Thursday evening.
Trump congratulated the organization for its 80th anniversary and teed up the November election as “another struggle for survival of our nation,” telling the assembled attendees that “the greatest threat is not from the outside of our country.”
“I’m here today because I know that to achieve victory in this fight, just like in the battles of the past, we still need the hand of our lord and the grace of almighty God; we have to have that,” Trump said.
“Our country is being destroyed by a radical left, corrupt political class that has gotten communist, Marxist, and even fascist. I used to say we will never have a socialist state, and I was right; we passed over socialism. Socialism is a nice way by comparison to where we are now,” he added.
The former president also took jabs at his likely general election opponent, President Joe Biden, and said he has taken the gloves off since he was indicted last year.
“From Joe Biden on down – and I’m not sure that Biden knows what the hell’s going on, I don’t think he knows he’s alive, actually. And I never used to say that until I got indicted, then I said, ‘Okay, now I can say like it is,’” Trump said.
Trump also leaned into his claim that he will protect Christians under a second Trump administration, promising he will “fight even harder for Christians.”
President Trump: “I come before you as a friend and an ally, and a fellow believer… And I make you a simple promise: In my first term I fought for Christians harder than any president… and I will fight even harder for Christians with four more years…” pic.twitter.com/pNFvbfwAmG
— MAGA War Room (@MAGAIncWarRoom) February 23, 2024
“No one will be touching the cross of Christ under the Trump administration. I swear to you, that will never happen,” Trump said.
“When I return to the White House, I will once again aggressively defend religious liberty just like I had for four years, you had no problems, but we’re going to defend it in all of its forms,” he added.
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The former president will speak at the Conservative Political Action Conference outside Washington, D.C., on Saturday ahead of the South Carolina Republican presidential primary.
Trump and Biden appear to be on a collision course for a rematch of the 2020 election in November.
