Former President Donald Trump kicked off a North Carolina campaign rally with a pledge to slap the names of Confederate generals on military bases — and was met with overwhelming cheers.
Trump's promise to re-instate the name of Fort Bragg — stripped from the base after the violent death of George Floyd, a Black man, under a police officer's knee — was met with cries of celebration, video of the event shows.
"Should we change the name from Fort Liberty back to Fort Bragg?" Trump asked the crowd. "I'm doing it. And we're leading in all the polls, we should get elected. Remember this, they cheat like hell. Too big to rig. We need too big to rig."
Gram Slattery, a reporter for Reuters, explained the fort was named after Braxton Bragg, who was "widely considered among the Confederacy's worst generals and a very stern slaveowner."
Trump went on later in the speech to add, "I think I just learned the secret to winning absolutely and by massive margins. I'm gonna promise to you ... that we're gonna change the name back to Fort Bragg."
The former president appeared delighted that a soldier had faced jeers for referring to the North Carolina base by its official name.
"This great looking soldier just accidentally said Fort Liberty," Trump said. "He almost got booed the hell out of the place!"
Many social media commenters professed themselves shocked both by Trump's promise and the overwhelming response he received.
Independent congressional reporter Jamie Dupree argued Trump was obsessed with a past defeat.
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"Trump is still mad that the Pentagon changed the names of military bases named for Confederate generals," wrote Dupree. "He vetoed a major military policy bill with that provision, but Congress overrode his veto."
Retired Marine fighter pilot and former Senate candidate Amy McGrath was blunt in her criticism of Trump and the crowd.
"He’s really going after the racist, un-enlightened, clinging to the lost cause of the confederacy vote," wrote McGrath. "That’s actually a minority of the military/veteran community in 2024. There are old guys who care about base names. Post 911 vets either don’t care or welcome the change."
