DES MOINES, Iowa — Former President Trump struck conciliatory notes in his Iowa-caucuses victory speech Monday night, praising his vanquished GOP opponents and promised to unite the country and turn it around.
Following his decisive win in the Iowa caucus, Mr. Trump put aside his criticisms of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who late Monday were both trailing Mr. Trump by around 30 points in the Hawkeye State.
“They said you’ll never get over 50,” Mr. Trump told the crowd, promoting a historic win that was projected just a half an hour after the caucus opened.
With 95% of the votes counted, Mr. Trump had 51% support and had won all 99 of the state’s counties, though at least one was within the margin of error.
Mr. Trump called his Iowa victory the first win, “because the big night is going to be in November, when we take back our country and we truly make America great again.”
He heaped praise on Mr. DeSantis and Ms. Haley, who he called “very smart people, very capable people.”
He’s headed to New Hampshire on Tuesday to do battle mainly with Ms. Haley, who in at least one poll was closing in on the former president’s big lead.
Mr. Trump thanked former first lady Melania Trump, her mother Amalija Knavs, who died earlier this month, and his children and sister.
He pledged to secure the border, end the war in Ukraine and restore peace through strength.
“We love Iowa but they are all great,” Mr. Trump said, referring to primary voters. “They only want to see one thing. They want our country to come back. They are embarrassed at what’s going on. They want us to be great again.”
• Susan Ferrechio can be reached at sferrechio@washingtontimes.com.
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.