MILWAUKEE – Former President Donald Trump’s previous 2024 rivals former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis took the stage on night two of the Republican National Convention, speaking in favor of the former president Tuesday after a bitter battle in the primary.
The back-to-back Haley and DeSantis speeches came toward the end of the night and were in line with Trump’s larger theme of “unity” that he announced after being nearly assassinated Saturday night.
Haley -– who was Trump’s last remaining GOP rival in the race -– was invited to speak at the RNC after Trump’s change in theme to unify the party. However, she was initially welcomed with cheers and boos, which demonstrated some of the deep divisions that remain.
“President Trump asked me to speak at this convention in the name of unity. It was a gracious invitation and I was happy to accept,” Haley began.
“Donald Trump has my strong endorsement. Period,” she continued, winning over the crowd.
Haley then spoke about the concern surrounding President Biden’s age and mental fitness, saying that voting for him is voting for Vice President Kamala Harris.
“For the sake of our nation, we have to go with Donald Trump,” she said, before speaking to voters who are hesitant about voting for Trump.
“My message to them is simple: You don’t have to agree with Trump 100% of the time to vote for him,” she said.
Haley also spoke about her experience working under Trump as UN ambassador, touting similar points that Trump makes about his foreign policy record: that Russian President Vladimir Putin didn’t invade Ukraine under Trump and that he got the US out of the “insane” Iran nuclear deal, making them too “weak” to start any wars.
The picture painted a contrast with today’s Iran under Biden, which is supporting the terror group Hamas in its war on Israel.
Haley argued that a “unified Republican Party” is “essential” to saving the country, because Democrats are “putting our freedoms in danger.”
“We must not only be a unified party. We must also expand out party. We are so much better when we’re bigger,” she said. “We are stronger when we welcome people into our party who have different backgrounds and experiences.”
Both DeSantis and Haley had endorsed Trump after dropping out of the primary. Haley, who dropped her bid after Super Tuesday, waited months to say she would vote for Trump, but eventually threw her weight behind the former president. She later released her 97 delegates to vote for Trump if they chose to do so at the convention.
DeSantis took to the stage immediately after Haley, who also previously served as the governor of South Carolina. The Florida governor was greeted with roaring cheers as he said Republicans must send Biden “back to his basement” before launching into a full-scale criticism of the Biden administration.
He recalled the 13 service members who died during Biden’s Afghanistan pull out and called Biden a “figurehead” and a “tool” for imposing leftist agenda.
DeSantis’ message differed from Haley’s in that he did not call for unity, instead focusing on Biden’s faults and Trump’s strengths.
“Donald Trump has been demonized. He’s been sued. He’s been prosecuted and he nearly lost his life. We cannot let him down, and we can not let America down,” DeSantis said to thunderous applause.
He ended his speech by calling on Americans to “fight! fight! fight!,” echoing Trump’s call after he was shot.
The Florida governor also made remarks Tuesday afternoon at a sideline event by RNC Mom’s for Liberty where he spoke out against California becoming the first state to ban gender notification policies, as well as the anti-Israel protests that took over college campuses across the nation.
DeSantis suspended his campaign right before the New Hampshire primary and immediately endorsed Trump despite the former president’s campaign launching personal attacks about his height and manners throughout the campaign – including allegations of him eating pudding with his fingers.
Trump had made peace with both candidates in the past, saying he sees Haley “on our team in some form” in the future, and reportedly telling DeSantis, “Ron, I love that you’re back.”
Former 2024 candidate Vivek Ramaswamy also spoke earlier Tuesday night, echoing the need for “unity.”
Standing on stage months after ending his run for the presidency, he joked that he “achieved the impossible” because “most of you know how to say my name.”
Ramaswamy dropped out right after the Iowa caucus results trickled in, which showed he did not get the support he expected in the first voting state. He immediately endorsed Trump and had some support in becoming Trump’s VP before the former president’s campaign shot down that possibility.
Now, with Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) being named Trump’s VP, Ramaswamy has said he would be open to replacing him in the Senate seat, or, if Trump chooses, serving in his administration if the GOP takes back the White House in November.
The millionaire also touted Trump’s agenda to close the southern border, restore law and order, boost the economy and “revive national pride.”
Ramaswamy said Trump will “unite this country. Not through empty words, but through action.”
“Because you know what, success is unifying. Excellence is unifying,” he said. “That’s who we are as Americans.”