Trump drives ‘law and order’ message home at convention

Donald Trump laid claim to the title of “law and order candidate” during his acceptance speech Thursday night while vowing to be the champion of “forgotten” Americans in the White House. 

“I have a message for all of you: The crime and violence that today afflicts our nation will soon come to an end. Beginning on January 20, 2017, safety will be restored,” Trump said in his speech formally accepting the Republican nomination for president.

{mosads}The billionaire kept up his attacks on President Obama and presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, portraying them as responsible for global instability and domestic strife.

“America is far less safe — and the world is far less stable — than when Obama made the decision to put Hillary Clinton in charge of America’s foreign policy,” he said.

“But Hillary Clinton’s legacy does not have to be America’s legacy,” the speech continued. “The problems we face now — poverty and violence at home, war and destruction abroad — will last only as long as we continue relying on the same politicians who created them.” 

Trump, citing crime statistics, blamed Obama for the rise in violence in major cities, including Chicago, the president’s hometown.

The speech pointed to the Obama administration’s immigration policies — and Clinton’s plans to expand upon them — as endangering the country. 

“The number of new illegal immigrant families who have crossed the border so far this year already exceeds the entire total from 2015,” Trump said. “They are being released by the tens of thousands into our communities with no regard for the impact on public safety or resources.“ 

He also told the story of a young college student who was murdered by an undocumented immigrant and referred to people with similar stories who spoke at the convention on Monday. 

“These families have no special interests to represent them,” Trump said. “There are no demonstrators to protest on their behalf. My opponent will never meet with them, or share in their pain. Instead, my opponent wants sanctuary cities.”

Trump also portrayed Clinton’s proposals on immigration and Syrian refugees as a threat to the country, arguing that she will effectively place the interests of foreigners over those of U.S. citizens.

“Americans want relief from uncontrolled immigration,” he said. “Communities want relief. Yet Hillary Clinton is proposing mass amnesty, mass immigration and mass lawlessness. Her plan will overwhelm your schools and hospitals, further reduce your jobs and wages, and make it harder for recent immigrants to escape from poverty.”

Promising to be the change that the country needs, Trump argued in his speech that he can renew U.S. standing in the world.  

He also made the case for his economic plan, arguing that his proposal to lower taxes and cut regulations will boost the nation’s wealth.

Trump argued that combining an overhaul of the immigration system with renegotiated international trade deals will provide more jobs for Americans.

“I have made billions of dollars in business making deals — now I’m going to make our country rich again,” he said, calling trade a “signature message” of his platform. “I am going to turn our bad trade agreements into great ones.”

“Every day I wake up determined to deliver a better life for the people all across this nation that have been neglected, ignored, and abandoned,” Trump said.

Updated at 12 a.m.