Donald Trump began a speech about veterans on Monday by declaring himself the presidential candidate of “law and order” and of “compassion.”
Speaking about the fatal shooting last Thursday of five police officers in Dallas and the unrest that has followed, Trump called for an end to “hostility against all police and all members of our law enforcement.”
“Politicians and activists who seek to remove police or policing from a community are hurting the poorest and most vulnerable americans,” he said during remarks in Virginia Beach, Va., noting that “America’s police and law enforcement personnel are what separates civilization from total chaos and the destruction of our country as we know it.”
Promising to protect all Americans, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee proudly declared himself the “candidate of law and order.”
“Not only am I the law and order candidate, but also the candidate of compassion,” Trump told the audience. “Believe it.”
“Hillary Clinton on the other hand is weak, ineffective and pandering … and she’s either a liar or grossly incompetent,” he added, taking a jab at his Democratic opponent. “Personally, it’s probably both.”
