Former US President Donald Trump has strongly hinted he intends to run for office again in 2024. And he declared himself the "healthiest ever" head of state.
The 76-year-old gave a keynote speech to delegates at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Texas, as reported by the Mirror. At the event, also attended by former right-wing Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage, Mr Trump indicated he’s made a decision on the 2024 race.
When asked when Republicans could expect a formal announcement, Mr Trump replied: "It’s certainly not a very long period, the time is coming. I think people are going to be very happy, our country has never been in a position like this, we’ve lost everything. We’ll be making an announcement in the not too distant future."
Mr Trump lost his premiership to Joe Biden in 2020. And during his speech, he claimed the last election was stolen from him.
But he was handed a massive boost by representatives after a straw poll by CPAC revealed he has more support than Florida's 43-year-old Governor Ron DeSantis. He received the backing of 69 per cent of CPAC delegates, putting him way ahead of Mr DeSantis on 24 per cent.
A recent Harvard/Harris opinion poll gave Mr Trump a four-point lead over Mr Biden and a seven per cent advantage against Vice President Kamala Harris. On Sunday, former New Jersey governor and Mr Trump's former adviser Chris Christie estimated dead even odds of the former president running for office again.
“Am I convinced Donald Trump ’s going to run for president? I am not convinced. I believe it’s a 50-50 shot right now whether he runs or he doesn’t,” he said to ABC’s This Week.
Possibly having a dig at President Joe Biden, who has been isolating for nearly two weeks with coronavirus, Mr Trump claimed former White House doctor Ronny Jackson “loved” looking at his body and told him he was "the healthiest president that’s ever lived".
Mr Trump said: "He was a great doctor. He was an admiral, a doctor and now he’s a congressman. He loved looking at my body. It was so strong and powerful. But he said I’m the healthiest president that’s ever lived . . . I said, ‘I like this guy'."
Mr Trump also cited the US withdrawal from Afghanistan as one of the reasons the country's "prestige" had been damaged. "Our country has never been at a worse point," he said.
"They gave away $85 billion worth of equipment, dead soldiers, you still have Americans over there probably as hostages, eventually will be hostages. There has never been a time like this."
The latest news comes as a congressional committee continues to investigate the riots at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, when Trump supporters ransacked the building in the hope of halting the confirmation of Biden as president. The committee has so far chastised Mr Trump for his inaction over the violent protestors.
