As Hillary Clinton basked in the glow of her official nomination on Friday, Donald Trump was stumping in Colorado, a swing state with a growing population that could prove crucial come November.
Trump kicked things off by complaining about the fire marshal’s refusal to let more people into the Colorado Springs auditorium, which had a capacity of 1,500.
“They won’t let them in, and the reason they won’t let them in is because they don’t know what the hell they’re doing, that’s why,” Trump said into the microphone. “Maybe they’re a Hillary person.”
Just a few months ago, Trump waved off concerns about his temperament, saying he’d be so presidential that we’ll all be bored. But he was in top form on Friday, opining on Hillary’s speech—”so average”—and the convention ratings—”much more important than polls”—before launching into an hourlong diatribe that covered everything from Clinton’s yoga habits to Dubai’s airport. Trump also devoted a substantial chunk of time to enumerating ways in which the press has misunderstood past comments of his.
Among the best moments:
- “I don’t like email. You know why? I’m intelligent.”
- “General George Patton, who was rough as hell—he wouldn’t be doing emails when he’s gonna be ready to attack. If he were around, he’d say ‘I don’t like that system at all.'”
- “I’ll tell you where Bernie blew it. He sold his soul to the devil.”
- “I think I have the best temperament, or one of the best temperaments, of anyone who has ever run for president.”
- “Some of the richest people in this country are people who can’t even read or write. They’re called friends of mine—contractors.”
- [on Megyn Kelly and “blood coming out of her wherever”] “I had in mind nose, but it could have even been ears.”
Later on Friday, Trump was in the middle of a double-baby photo op at a rally in Denver when one of the babies burst into tears, creating what will likely be a signature addition to the annals of Trump portraiture.
Trump’s weekend media blitz isn’t over yet. In an interview with ABC News that airs tomorrow (July 31), George Stephanopoulos asks him about comments made by Khizr Khan, father of US Army Captain Humayun Khan, a Muslim soldier who was killed in Iraq in 2004. Khizr spoke out against Trump at the Democratic convention on Thursday, saying the Republican nominee had “sacrificed nothing” for the country and “consistently smears the character of Muslims.”
Trump says Khan was “very emotional” and probably a nice guy, but the niceties didn’t last long: “If you look at his wife, she was standing there. She had nothing to say. She probably, maybe she wasn’t allowed to have anything to say. You tell me.”