Texas politicians from Congress and state government spoke on Trump’s behalf in the leadup to his speech at 7:00 p.m. that night.
President Brandon Judd of the National Border Patrol Council, Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller, and U.S. Rep. Pat Fallon (R-TX-04) each spoke with Right Side Broadcasting in front of the attendees filing into the event.
Judd remarked that the Biden administration is “inundated with activists” seeking “chaos” on the southern border. He claimed the Democratic Party promotes illegal immigration in order to “change demographics” and get more Democrats elected, harkening back to then-San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro’s 2013 comment that Texas would “become a purple state and then a blue state, because of the demographics, because of the population growth of folks from outside of Texas.”
Judd also said that the spike in fentanyl trafficking over the last year “all starts with illegal immigration,” and implied that Mexican cartels promote illegal immigration in order to overwhelm border patrol and sneak fentanyl into the U.S.
Miller called Trump “the best thing to ever happen to agriculture.” He stated that Trump’s tariff policies made American farmers more competitive against China, and that the current crisis of illegal immigration threatens farmers on the border. He also suggested helping Central and South American countries improve their agriculture to reduce the amount of people leaving for the U.S.
Fallon stated that “Grover Cleveland a.k.a. Donald Trump” would be the president of the United States again. Cleveland is the only American president to serve two non-consecutive terms, from 1885-1889 and from 1893-1897.
At 4:00 p.m., special guest speakers took the stage to deliver their formal remarks before Trump himself spoke to the crowd. Several of them criticized President Joe Biden and called on Trump to run for president again in 2024.
Judd and former U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement director Thomas Homan said the Biden administration allowed the border to become insecure and created the current wave of illegal immigration. Judd called Biden “the cartels’ best friend,” and Homan said Trump should return to “fix this sh—.”
Republican candidate for U.S. House District TX-38 Wesley Hunt said, “Our 47th future president is just the man to bring us the times that we as Americans deserve.”
“President Trump was our 45th president and he has the opportunity to be our 47th president.”
U.S. Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX-13) then took the stage, repeating claims about dangerous fentanyl trafficking and that with rising illegal immigration, “Biden is setting us up for the next 9/11.” He also said Trump “will save this country again” and win the White House in 2024.
U.S. Rep. Michael Cloud (R-TX-27) and Attorney General Ken Paxton both insisted that the Biden administration is responsible for the border crisis and even on the side of Mexican cartels. Cloud claimed Biden “decided to aid and abet cartels,” and Paxton suggested “a partnership between the Biden administration and the cartels” because of the sheer number of people the administration has allowed to claim asylum.
Lt. Governor Dan Patrick said in his speech of the midterm elections, “There’s not a red wave coming, there’s a tsunami coming.” He also said “Democrats don’t want to see Trump in the White House again” because he was able to fill three seats on the Supreme Court.
When Trump took the stage, he claimed that under his administration, the U.S. “had the strongest border in the country’s history” but that under the Biden administration, illegal immigrants from over 160 countries are “storming” the southern border.
He also veered into election reform, stating that American elections need paper ballots, voter identification, and same-day voting in order to be secure. Trump remarked that if his proposals were followed through, then the border crisis would solve itself with “the right people” in office.
Regarding the 2020 election, Trump said, “We got more votes than they did, they just cheated.” He also claimed that “January 6 was caused because of a crooked, stolen election,” and that U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA-12) was in charge of security at the Capitol but refused to call in the military to disperse the rioters.
Before Trump’s speech, Republican candidate for Texas Senate District 27 Adam Hinojosa spoke, claiming Trump proved businessmen could run the government better than politicians and that “I am such a businessman.” Trump later endorsed Hinojosa, adding him to the list of Texas politicians with the former president’s backing.
He also endorsed the Republican candidate for Nueces County judge Connie Scott.
The Texan spoke to Barbie Baker, chair of the Republican Party of Nueces County, where the rally was held, about the event and the future of South Texas. “It all starts at the bottom,” she said, explaining that putting conservative Republicans in local office is the “first step.”
When asked about the chances Republicans have to win South Texas seats in the midterms, Baker was optimistic.
She said that she and others watched South Texas turn red “in a literal sense,” as the political group Texas Latino Conservatives expanded from Houston down to Nueces County and out to West Texas.
Baker was confident that the issues of border security and inflation, including fuel prices, along with outreach like the Trump rally, would energize South Texans to vote for Republicans. “South Texas is the key to Texas,” she said.
Trump said the GOP is becoming a new home for Hispanic Americans, citing U.S. Rep. Mayra Flores (R-TX-34) and Republican candidates for U.S. House Districts 15 and 28 Monica de la Cruz and Cassy Garcia as examples.
Like Patrick and Paxton, Trump emphasized the importance of the 2022 midterms, calling on Republicans to vote and take back Congress. He then said that “in 2024, we are going to take back our magnificent White House.”
Trump invited Judd and Homan to the stage to deliver brief remarks. Judd praised Trump for his actions as president and said, “We hope that’s what you’re going to do again.”
Homan said, “If Trump comes back, I come back,” to which Trump responded, “That’s a good deal.”
Near the end of his speech, Trump said of running for president in the future that he would “probably have to do it again.”
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