Donald Trump Jr. labeled Joe Biden as the “Loch Ness Monster of the swamp” during the first night of the Republican National Convention as he warned voters against the sort of left-wing radicalism that would stop the economy in its tracks.
President Trump’s eldest son trawled the Democratic nominee’s long history in Washington to accuse him of trying to “crush the working man and woman” with globalist policies.
Instead, he offered a positive vision of unfettered economic growth and intellectual freedom in a second Trump term.
The result was a speech steeped more heavily in policy and philosophy than the barbs and social media memes for which he has become known. Instead, Trump Jr. appealed to history, quoted a Founding Father, and offered the Republican Party as defenders of freedom.
Yet he could not resist delivering one of the strongest lines of the night, as he attacked Biden for wanting to roll back Trump tax cuts and collect more money for the swamp.
“That makes sense, considering Joe Biden is basically the Loch Ness Monster of the swamp,” he said. “For the past half-century, he’s been lurking around in there.
“He sticks his head up every now and then to run for president, then he disappears and doesn’t do much in between.”
Trump Jr. delivered his remarks live from the Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C., which is operating as a hub for the convention.
Since his father took office, he has developed a reputation as a key bridge to the Trump base. His explosive social media presence has frequently been trained on “woke” liberal fragility, dishing out punchlines to please his fans rather than sway the argument.
But on Monday night, delivering the penultimate speech, he chose a different way to push back on “cancel culture” and frame the threat from protesters toppling monuments: He quoted Thomas Jefferson’s rejection of “every form of tyranny over the mind of man.”
“Now the Left, they are trying to ‘cancel’ all of those founders,” he said. “They don’t seem to understand this important principle: In order to improve in the future, we must learn from our past — not erase it.”
The more politically mature tone will renew speculation that Trump Jr. is preparing the ground to follow his father into office, even though friends say he has other priorities. And skeptics will point out that the tightly controlled atmosphere of a COVID-19 convention makes it easier to stick to the script.
The result on Monday was a speech that offered voters a clear choice between different futures, exactly what the Trump campaign needs to do if it is to lure Biden into a tussle and prevent the election being a simple referendum on Trump’s record.
“If Democrats really wanted to help minorities and underserved communities, instead of bowing to big money union bosses, they’d let parents choose what school is best for their kids,” he said.
“They’d limit immigration to protect American workers. They’d support the police who protect our neighborhoods. They’d learn how to negotiate trade deals that prioritize America’s interests for a change.”
And while Democrats last week offered a bleak view of American under Trump, Trump Jr. finished by offering what he said was his father’s dream of a “bright and beautiful future for all.”
“Imagine the life you want to have — one with a great job, a beautiful home, and a perfect family. You can have it,” he said.
“Imagine the country you want to live in — one with true equality of opportunity, where hard work pays off, and justice is served with compassion and without partiality. You can have it.”
