Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy gave his first speech in New Hampshire on Tuesday after dropping out of the 2024 presidential race and endorsing former President Donald Trump.
Speaking after being invited onstage by Trump, Ramaswamy continued with much of his previous campaign rhetoric, though he directed it fully in support of Trump.
“It’s not a war between black and white, it’s not between Democrat and Republican, and even in a deeper sense — It’s between the permanent state and the everyday citizen, between those of us who love the United States of America and a fringe minority who hates this country and what we stand for,” he declared.
“And right now, we need a commander in chief who will lead us to victory in this war. That’s what we need in this country,” he said.
Ramaswamy explained his decision to drop out after coming in fourth place in Iowa, saying he was listening to the voice of the people.
“That we the people choose who leads this country, and so we heard we the people last night, and that is why last evening, I met my friend here, we met in person, and I said I would endorse Donald Trump for president of the United States and do everything in my power to lead us to victory in this war. It is a 1776 moment right now,” he said.
Ramaswamy directed a blistering attack against his onetime rival in the race, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, declaring her an enemy of the ideals of the United States and the American Revolution.
“And you know what, we do have some enemies that we need to defeat on the other side, but we have challenges to address in our own party right here at home,” he said.
“So you know what, if you want somebody who’s going to foist onto you, to use your social media account, you want to use a driver’s license to do it, to have the right to use the internet? This man is not your man. There’s another candidate in this race who will do that for you. It’s Nikki Haley,” he said.
“You want to cut Social Security? You want to cut Medicare, you want to cut veterans benefits, so we can fork over more money to Ukraine, so some kleptocrat can buy a bigger house? Vote for Nikki Haley, not this man right here,” he continued.
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“But if you want to actually put an agenda that puts Americans first, to state that the moral obligation of your leaders is to the citizens of this country, not another one, there is not a better choice left in this race than this man right here. And that is why I am asking you to do the right thing as New Hampshire and to vote for Donald J. Trump as your next president,” he added.
Haley is seen by many as Trump’s foremost rival in the race as Gov. Ron DeSantis’s (R-FL) campaign loses steam. He is currently polling around 5.4% in New Hampshire, according to FiveThirtyEight.
