Washington DC: US President Donald Trump made a light-hearted remark about a “third term” while addressing the Salute to America celebrations marking the United States’ 250th Independence Day.
During his speech, Trump praised the achievements of the US military during his tenure and highlighted his administration’s efforts to rebuild the country’s military capabilities. In a sarcastic aside, the 80-year-old Republican said he should have referred to his current presidency as his “third term” instead of his second, taking a swipe at former President Joe Biden over the 2020 election, which Trump has repeatedly claimed was stolen.
“Our rise to being the world’s strongest and most powerful nation was no accident of history. We rebuilt our military in my first term. We use it a little bit in our, actually, I should say third term, but I won’t do that because I don’t want any controversy,” Trump said.
The remark echoed Trump’s long-standing allegations regarding the 2020 presidential election. After losing the election, Trump refused to concede and claimed the vote had been rigged. He filed multiple lawsuits in key states seeking to overturn the results but failed to produce evidence to support those allegations.
The controversy intensified in January 2021 when a mob of Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol in an attempt to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s Electoral College victory. Trump was accused of inciting the crowd through a speech delivered shortly before the attack, in which he urged his supporters to march to the Capitol.
Trump also highlighted what he described as the US military’s achievements during his current tenure.
“But we used it (military), and we’ve had tremendous success. You look at Venezuela, you look at Iran. We wiped it out. Wiped out their military,” Trump said.
Referring to an earlier speech at Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Trump said, “We knocked the hell out of Iran. They’re dying to settle. They want to settle so badly. We gave them a week off for a funeral because we’re nice,” drawing loud cheers and laughter from the crowd.
