CLEVELAND — Former President Donald Trump returned to Ohio for the first time since leaving office.

What You Need To Know

  • Making his first campaign style rally since his presidency ended, the former president launched what some pundits are calling a "revenge tour"

  • Trump targeted not just Democrats but also members of his own party

  • Former Trump official Max Miller is running a primary campaign against incumbent Republican congressman Anthony Gonzalez

Trump talked about the importance of winning back the House of Representatives and the Senate, while calling the first five months of the Biden Administration a complete disaster.

“In the Republican Party, we don’t believe violent criminals should be welcomed into our country with open arms. We think that they should be deported or put behind bars and that’s what I did during my administration,” Trump told the crowd as he went after President Biden’s handling of the U.S.-Mexico border.

Trump also addressed rising crime numbers. 

“New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, they have great police forces, they’re not allowed to do their job and now they’re all leaving," he said. "That’s going to be a real problem when they realize we need them and they’re not going to be there any longer.”

Trump repeated his unproven claims about the election being stolen and also took credit for the speedy creation of the COVID-19 vaccine as well as the rebuilding of the economy.  

“When the virus arrived we produced three vaccines in record time. They said it would take three years to five years, we got it done in less than nine months. Record, record, record time,” Trump said. 

Trump campaigned for Max Miller, the primary challenger to Rep. Anthony Gonzalez.

Miller addressed the crowd, attacking Gonzalez for his stance on issues like troops in the Middle East and amnesty, saying the Republican congressman turned his back on his district when voting for impeachment.

“In a single vote, he betrayed the Republican Party, our president, our values and most importantly, he betrayed the voters of his district,” Miller said.

Gonzalez hit back in a statement this week. 

“While Max was fetching the president Diet Cokes and deciding what music he’d play at rallies, Gonzalez was getting results for his district,” Gozalez’s campaign said in a statement. 

Trump hinted at another run for president, saying he might have to win the election for a third time.

Congressman Jim Jordan also spoke at the rally.

“You want him to run again in 2024? So do I,” he told supporters.