CLEVELAND — The Trump campaign set “Make America Safe Again” as the theme of the Republican convention’s first night well before the attack that killed three police officers and wounded three others in Baton Rouge. But that attack, and the earlier shooting in Dallas that killed five officers, added weight and a new emphasis to Trump’s promise to protect Americans.
That wasn’t always the idea. Donald Trump himself started using the phrase “make America safe again” at the end of last year, but at the time, in the aftermath of the Paris massacre, it was a pledge to destroy the Islamic State and prevent terrorist attacks in the United States. Now, after Dallas and Baton Rouge, things are different. In a Sunday evening interview on Fox News’ “Hannity,” top Trump campaign official Paul Manafort said the make-America-safe idea has taken on an additional meaning.
