Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally on Wednesday, May 1, 2024, at the Waukesha County Expo Center in Waukesha, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally on Wednesday, May 1, 2024, at the Waukesha County Expo Center in Waukesha, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
NEW YORK (AP) 鈥 Former President Donald Trump will speak at the Libertarian 好色tv Convention in Washington, D.C. later this month as he tries to woo voters beyond the Republican base and avoid losing support to independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
鈥淟ibertarians are some of the most independent and thoughtful thinkers in our Country, and I am honored to join them in Washington, DC, later this month," Trump said in a statement issued Wednesday. 鈥淲e must all work together to help advance freedom and liberty for every American, and a second Trump Administration will achieve that goal."
He went on to make the case that, "If Libertarians join me and the Republican Party, where we have many Libertarian views, the election won鈥檛 even be close. We cannot have another four years of death, destruction, and incompetence. WE WILL WORK TOGETHER AND WIN!鈥
The event comes as Trump's campaign has ramped up its attacks against Kennedy, who is running as an independent against Trump and President Joe Biden after dropping his Democratic primary bid. Kennedy has appealed to disaffected Democrats and Republicans to the pending rematch of the 2020 election.
Kennedy has talked up his support for the Libertarian Party, telling CNN in January that he had a 鈥渞eally good relationship鈥 with the party. A Kennedy alliance with the Libertarian Party could expedite his effort to gain ballot access in all 50 states, including battlegrounds that tiny margins could decide in November, though Kennedy told ABC last month that he didn't plan to run on the Libertarian ticket.
On Wednesday, the primary super PAC supporting Trump blasted out an old video clip of Kennedy that appeared to show him criticizing red states. 鈥淩FK hates you!鈥 on X, formerly Twitter. Kennedy's campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
While Trump has insisted publicly that he believes Kennedy's candidacy hurts him less than it does Biden, he has been lacing into him in interviews and on his social media platform.
鈥淩FK Jr. is the most Radical Left Candidate in the race, by far,鈥 he wrote last month on Truth Social, calling Kennedy 鈥渁 big fan of the Green New Scam, and other economy killing disasters.鈥
Trump campaign aides also went after him on social media Wednesday, calling him 鈥渁 radical leftist lunatic,鈥 and , 鈥淎ny 鈥榗onservative鈥 or 鈥楻epublican鈥 letting this left-wing lunatic come on their platform to whitewash his decades of far-left liberal positions & activism are aiding and abetting Joe Biden.鈥
The Libertarian Party said in a release announcing the speech that they will share a list of their top ten issues with Trump ahead of the convention, 鈥渉oping to make an impact on the policy positions of a past, and possibly future, President.鈥
鈥淔or 50 years, we鈥檝e been trying to get our candidates on the main stage with major party POTUS candidates and we鈥檝e finally succeeded in bringing one to our stage," said Angela McArdle, the party鈥檚 chair, in a statement. 鈥淲e will do everything in our power to use this incredible opportunity to advance the message of liberty.鈥
