On Thursday, November 14, at the celebration of the America First Policy Institute (AFPI) held at Mar-a-Lago in Florida, President-elect Trump delivered his first public speech since winning the 2024 election, celebrating the victory and praising his allies.
Trump called this year’s election the “most influential election” and reflected on how in 2016, despite winning the election, he lost the popular vote, but this time he won both.
He said, “They said back then, ‘He didn’t win the popular vote’, but now, we won a record-breaking popular vote, so no one can say that about us anymore.”
He also congratulated the newly elected cabinet members and senior executives, many of whom attended the event.
Newly announced appointees present at the celebration included Elon Musk, Vivek Ramaswamy, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum.
After greeting a few members present, Trump shifted to praising Musk, with whom he had spent a considerable amount of time negotiating affairs since his victory.
He thanked Musk for representing him in Pennsylvania during the campaign, saying, “We have a brilliant man, and I am someone who believes in high IQ, and his IQ is the highest.”
He then commended Ramaswamy and Musk for co-leading the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
He said, “They will save a lot of funds, making our country stronger and better; they will also issue separate reports, but eventually, there will be a comprehensive report; if these two are put together, it will be excellent; we look forward to working with Elon, it will be a very rare experience.”
Trump briefly mentioned how he chose Kennedy Jr. to head the Department of Health and Human Services.
He subtly and humorously described the position, “He wants to make people healthy, he has been obsessed with this for the past few years, today, I nominate him for this position, which is the most important position, he will make you healthy, live longer.”
However, he added, “I just saw a news report, Bobby, people like you, don’t get too popular, Bobby.”
At the end of his speech, Trump suddenly announced that Burgum would be appointed as Secretary of Interior, with the official appointment to be announced on Friday, where his pick for Energy Secretary would also be revealed.
He said, “There’s another person maybe announced with him, he is very important, we will address energy and land interior issues, this will be a very incredible announcement, I am looking forward to the formal announcement.”
He also joked that the start date of his term should be marked as November 6, claiming that the U.S. economy has improved since his victory.
Trump said, “Let’s consider November 5 as the start of my term, okay? Or if you prefer, starting from November 6 is also fine, because on November 5, the markets already doubled, the people’s enthusiasm doubled, in recent times it has doubled.”
Trump concluded by praising AFPI executives, Linda and Brooke, for their achievements, expressing his honor to be present.
AFPI is a non-profit think tank that has been exclusively promoting Trump’s public policy agenda over the past four years, assisting hundreds of former Trump administration officials preparing for Trump’s second term. The President-elect chose to deliver his first public speech after the victory at the AFPI event, indicating the organization’s role in Trump’s upcoming agenda.
Actor Sylvester Stallone made a brief speech before Trump took the stage, drawing comparisons between the President-elect and his classic movie characters as well as George Washington.
Other speakers before Trump’s speech included AFPI Chairman Brook Rollins, Board Chairman and Trump Transition Committee Co-Chair Linda McMahon, Argentine President Javier Millei, Ramaswamy, and AFPI Vice Chairman Larry Kudlow.
After Trump’s address, Musk also gave a brief speech, reiterating his commitment to thoroughly reforming the federal government.
The banquet hall was filled with Trump’s allies, ranging in fame.
Musk sat with Burgum, Ramaswamy, billionaire Howard Lutnick, former Deputy Chief of Staff in the Trump administration Dan Scavino, Senior Policy Advisor Stephen Miller, and Senior Advisor James Blair, among others appointed as top officials in the Trump White House.
During his speech, Trump praised Texas Congressman Ronny Jackson and Florida Congressman Byron Donalds as “stars”.
Additionally, House Speaker Mike Johnson, newly appointed Attorney General and former Congressman Matt Gaetz, newly appointed Director of National Intelligence and former Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, Donald Trump Jr., Trump 2020 campaign advisor Kimberly Guilfoyle, Trump 2016 campaign manager Kellyanne Conway, and former Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal all attended the event.
(References from ABC News report)