Trump gave a speech at Gettysburg in 2016. It sounds a lot like his present-day Twitter feed.
Zero score and four years ago, President Trump was complaining about the exact same things he's griping about now.
Trump announced Monday he's considering the battlefield at Gettysburg and the White House as possible locations for his presidential nomination acceptance speech, and while the president regularly makes speeches at the latter, he's not a complete stranger to the former. Just weeks before he was elected in 2016, Trump gave his first Gettysburg address.
In the 2016 speech, Trump complained of a "totally rigged and broken" political system, insulted his opponent, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and warned of supposed voter fraud that could derail the election. Trump has also aired these exact same grievances on his Twitter account in the last 14 days.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In the lead-up to the 2020 election, Trump has taken a forceful stance against mail-in voting (except in Florida), baselessly arguing it will lead to mass voter fraud and threatening legal action to prevent the practice. The president has touted the incorrect claim that absentee ballots and mail-in ballots are different, and has completely ignored that he himself is a mail-in voter.
As recently as July, Trump took shots at Clinton on Twitter, drawing attention to her relationship with Russia and attacking her for alleged voter suppression.
So while Trump has had over 1,300 days and four years of presidential experience since his first go at Gettysburg, a 2020 Gettysburg address may have already written itself.
Although if recent poll numbers are any indication, it may be time to deviate from the source material.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Marianne is The Week’s Social Media Editor. She is a native Tennessean and recent graduate of Ohio University, where she studied journalism and political science. Marianne has previously written for The Daily Beast, The Crime Report, and The Moroccan Times.
-
Trump vows new tariffs on Canada over Reagan adspeed read The ad that offended the president has Ronald Reagan explaining why import taxes hurt the economy
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
-
Trump demands millions from his administrationSpeed Read The president has requested $230 million in compensation from the Justice Department for previous federal investigations
-
Trump nominee in limbo after racist texts leakSpeed Read Paul Ingrassia lost Republican support following the exposure of past racist text messages
-
Trump begins East Wing demolition for ballroomspeed read The president’s new construction will cost $250 million
-
Appeals court clears Trump’s Portland troop deploymentSpeed Read A divided federal appeals court ruled that President Trump can send the National Guard to Portland



