Trump to National Guard crowd in Michigan: 'Closer to World War III' than ever

Former President Donald Trump told a crowd of National Guard officers the world faces unprecedented dangers and positioned himself as uniquely capable of preventing threats he said the U.S. faces in a speech to the National Guard Association of the United States' annual business meeting in Detroit on Monday.

"I don't think we've ever been closer to World War III than we are now," Trump said. He told the audience that serving as their commander-in-chief was the greatest honor of his life and cast his Democratic opponent Vice President Kamala Harris as a proponent of "endless war" on the same day Harris stood by President Joe Biden's decision to withdraw from Afghanistan.

If elected, Trump said he would bring an end to the war in Ukraine that broke out following a Russian invasion, declaring himself the only candidate in the race who can make that commitment. Trump also vowed to secure higher payments from NATO countries, saying the U.S. loses too much money defending Europe and calling the current payments from NATO countries the “steal of the century.”

Trump also referenced what he sees as domestic threats facing the U.S., repeating past claims that his political enemies have weaponized government to jail their opponents, an apparent reference to his 34 felony convictions and the pending criminal cases against him. He repeated his promise to seal the U.S. Southern border, describing illegal crossings into the country as an "invasion."

In response to his speech, Harris for President Rapid Response Director Ammar Moussa said, "Trump cannot be trusted to keep us safe, but Vice President Harris is a proven leader on the world stage and will use her expertise to ensure America’s security, defeat our adversaries, and stand with our allies around the world.”

Trump's visit to the Motor City marks his seventh trip to Michigan this year. In the battleground state, he faces a close race against Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee. Harris has a nearly three-percentage point lead over Trump in the state as of Monday, according to a polling average from the website 538.

Trump last held a campaign rally in Michigan late last month in Grand Rapids — the first one after an assassination attempt against him. Since then, Trump and his running mate U.S. Sen. JD Vance of Ohio have held smaller events in Michigan with law enforcement.

One of Trump's biggest celebrity supporters — musician Kid Rock — wore a red "Keep America Great" hat to introduce Trump. And Democrat-turned-Trump-ally former U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii also took the stage to endorse Trump Monday.

The venue for Trump's speech, Huntington Place, is the same convention hall where his supporters four years ago banged on the windows outside the room where Detroit election workers counted absentee ballots cast by the city's voters and demanded they stop the vote count. Trump's supporters have once again begun mobilizing to serve as election workers and challengers this year.

After the speech in Detroit, Trump made a brief stop at his campaign’s office in Roseville in Macomb County where volunteers greeted him with applause and supporters lined the street, chanting his name.

“We had a great race in 2016, but we did much better in 2020, think of it,” he told the small crowd inside despite his loss four years ago. This year, he said he sees even more enthusiasm for his candidacy.

He cast doubt on the legitimacy of Harris’ late entrance in the race after she formally accepted her party’s nomination at the Democratic National Convention last week in Chicago. He did not react to a shouted question from the Free Press asking whether he would accept the results of the upcoming election.

As he railed against Harris with the attack lines he has tried to hone against his new opponent since she entered the race, he returned to a familiar promise. “We’re going to make America greater than ever before,” Trump said.

He told his volunteers to enjoy some pizza from the campaign and not only vowed to return but said the whole group could come to Mar-a-Lago if he wins in November.

Before traveling to Michigan on Monday, Trump spent the morning participating in a wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia marking three years since a terrorist attack outside of Kabul Airport killed 13 U.S. service members and over 100 Afghan civilians. Trump on Monday tried to tie Harris to Biden's handling of the chaotic Afghanistan withdrawal, but it is unclear how Harris as vice president may have shaped Biden's strategy.

Trump said Harris and Biden caused the "humiliation in Afghanistan" and said the withdrawal threatened U.S. credibility around the world.

In a statement mourning the American service members who died in the terrorist attack three years ago, Harris expressed support for Biden's decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan. "As I have said, President Biden made the courageous and right decision to end America's longest war. Over the past three years, our Administration has demonstrated we can still eliminate terrorists, including the leader of al-Qaeda and ISIS, without troops deployed into combat zones. I will never hesitate to take whatever action necessary to counter terrorist threats and protect the American people and the homeland," Harris said.

Biden addressed the National Guard officers at the Monday gathering virtually with a video thanking them for their service. "Simply put, we owe you," he said. Biden ended his campaign against Trump earlier this summer and endorsed Harris to replace him following his disastrous debate performance that prompted Democrats to call for Biden to bow out of the race. The last-minute shake-up of the presidential race has forced the Trump campaign to adjust to its new opponent.

Contact Clara Hendrickson: chendrickson@freepress.com or 313-296-5743. Follow her on X, previously called Twitter, @clarajanehen .

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Trump to National Guard crowd in Michigan: 'Closer to World War III' than ever