WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥 Donald Trump was booed repeatedly while addressing the Libertarian Party 春色直播 Convention on Saturday night, with many in the crowd shouting insults and decrying him for things like his COVID-19 policies, running up towering federal deficits and lying about his political record.
When he took the stage, many jeered while some supporters clad in 鈥淢ake America Great鈥 hats and T-shirts cheered and chanted 鈥淯SA! USA!鈥 It was a rare moment of Trump coming face-to-face with open detractors, which is highly unusual for someone accustomed to staging rallies in front of ever-adoring crowds.
Libertarians, who prioritize small government and individual freedoms, are often skeptical of the former president, and his invitation to address the convention has divided the party. Trump tried to make light of that by referring to the against him and joking, 鈥淚f I wasn鈥檛 a Libertarian before, I sure as hell am a Libertarian now.鈥
Trump tried to praise 鈥渇ierce champions of freedom in this room鈥 and called President a 鈥渢yrant鈥 and the 鈥渨orst president in the history of the United States,鈥 prompting some in the audience to scream back: 鈥淭hat鈥檚 you.鈥
As the insults continued, Trump eventually hit back, saying 鈥測ou don't want to win鈥 and suggesting that some Libertarians want to 鈥渒eep getting your 3% every four years.鈥
Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson won about 3% of the national vote in 2016, but nominee Jo Jorgensen got only a bit more than 1% during 2020鈥檚 .
Libertarians will pick their White House nominee during their convention, which wraps on Sunday. Trump鈥檚 appearance also gave him a chance to court voters who might otherwise support independent presidential candidate who gave his own Libertarian convention speech on .
Polls have shown for months that do not want a 2020 rematch between Trump and President . That dynamic could potentially boost support for an alternative like the Libertarian nominee or Kennedy, whose candidacy has allies of Biden and Trump concerned that he could be a spoiler.
Despite the raucous atmosphere, Trump continued to press on with his speech, saying he鈥檇 come 鈥渢o extend a hand of friendship鈥 in common opposition to Biden. That prompted a chant of 鈥淲e want Trump!鈥 from supporters, but more cries of 鈥淓nd the Fed!鈥 鈥 a common refrain from Libertarians who oppose the . One person who held up a sign reading 鈥淣o wannabe dictators!鈥 was dragged away by security.
Trump tried to win over the crowd by pledging to include a Libertarian in his Cabinet, but many in the crowd hissed in disbelief. The former president did get a big cheer when he promised to commute the life sentence of the of the drug-selling website Silk Road, Ross Ulbricht, and potentially release him on time served.
That was designed to energize Libertarian activists who believe government investigators overreached in building their case against Silk Road, and who generally oppose criminal drug policies more broadly. Ulbricht鈥檚 case was much-discussed during the Libertarian convention, and many of the hundreds in the crowd for Trump鈥檚 speech hoisted 鈥淔ree Ross鈥 signs and chanted the phrase as he spoke.
Despite those promises, many in the crowd remained antagonistic. One of the candidates vying for the Libertarian presidential nomination, Michael Rectenwald, declared from the stage before the former president arrived that 鈥渘one of us are great fans of Donald Trump.鈥 After his speech, Rectenwald and other Libertarian White House hopefuls took the stage to scoff at Trump and his speech.
Those for and against Trump even clashed over seating arrangements. About two hours before the former president's arrival, Libertarian organizers asked Trump supporters in the crowd to vacate the first four rows. They wanted convention delegates 鈥 many of whom said they鈥檇 traveled from around the country and bought expensive tickets to the proceedings 鈥 could sit close enough to hear the speech.
Many of the original seat occupants moved, but organizers eventually brought in more seats to calm things down.
The Libertarian split over Trump was reflected by Peter Goettler, president and chief executive of the libertarian Cato Institute, who suggested in a Washington Post column that the former president鈥檚 appearance violated the gathering鈥檚 core values and that 鈥渢he political party pretending to be libertarian has transitioned to a different identity.鈥
Trump鈥檚 campaign noted that Biden didn't attend the Libertarian convention himself, and argued that the former president's doing so was part of an ongoing effort to reach would-be supporters in places that are not heavily Republican 鈥 including the former president鈥檚 during a pause in his New York .
The Libertarian ticket will try to draw support from disaffected Republicans as well as people on the left. Such voters could also gravitate toward Kennedy.
Trump didn't dwell on Kennedy on Saturday night. But, after previously praising him and once considering him for a , the former president has gone on the attack against Kennedy. He suggested on social media that a vote for Kennedy would be a 鈥渨asted protest vote鈥 and that he would 鈥渆ven take Biden over Junior.鈥
The former president, while in office, referred to the COVID-19 vaccine as 鈥渙ne of the greatest miracles in the history of modern-day medicine.鈥 He鈥檚 since accused Kennedy of being a 鈥渇ake鈥 opponent of vaccines.
In his speech at the Libertarian convention, Trump and Biden of trampling on personal liberties in response to the pandemic. Trump bowed to pressure from public health officials and shut down businesses, Kennedy said, while Biden was wrong to mandate vaccines for millions of workers.
For his part, Biden has promoted winning the endorsement of in an attempt to marginalize their relative鈥檚 candidacy.
Kevin Munoz, a spokesperson for Biden鈥檚 reelection campaign, slammed Trump and top Republicans for opposing access to abortion and supporting limits on civil society, saying in a statement Saturday, that 鈥渇reedom isn鈥檛 free in Trump鈥檚 Republican Party and this weekend will be just one more reminder of that.鈥
