New Delhi: Former US president Donald Trump kicked off his campaign on Saturday for the first time since he announced his bid for the White House presidency in 2024 and visited two early-voting states shrugging off criticism that his run was off to a slow start.
"I'm more angry now, and I'm more committed now, than I ever was," Trump addressed a small crowd at the New Hampshire Republican Party's annual meeting in Salem, as quoted by news agency Reuters.
Next, Trump headed to Columbia, South Carolina to appear with his leadership team in the state. The campaigns on Saturday remain muted as compared to the raucous rallies that Trump had held in the past. In Columbia, Trump addressed almost 200 people in the state's capitol building, with Governor Henry McMaster and US Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina flanking him.
A lot of elected officials have raised doubts about Trump's ability to beat Democratic President Joe Biden in case he decides to run again as expected.
Numerous Republicans are planning if they should launch their own White House bids, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who has emerged as the biggest threat to Trump.
In fact, top Republicans in both states visited by Trump including New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley are likely to consider bids of their own.
Trump's campaign on both stops reflected some of the themes that animated his 2016 campaign, including his criticism of illegal immigration and China.
However, he went on to emphasise social issues, just like DeSantis, whose relentless focus on culture wars has helped build his national profile.
In Columbia, the former president criticised transgender rights and the teaching of critical race theory, a once-obscure academic concept that has triggered school board protests and classroom bans in certain states.
"We're going to stop the left-wing radical racists and perverts who are trying to indoctrinate our youth, and we're going to get their Marxist hands off our children," said Trump, as quoted by Reuters.
"We're going to defeat the cult of gender ideology and reaffirm that God created two genders: men and women. We're not going to allow men to play women's sports," he added.