/
Donald Trump returns to North Carolina to speak at Fraternal Order of Police meeting

Donald Trump returns to North Carolina to speak at Fraternal Order of Police meeting


Donald Trump returns to North Carolina to speak at Fraternal Order of Police meeting

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Donald Trump is returning to the battleground state of North Carolina Friday to address a meeting of the Fraternal Order of Police amidst growing evidence of increasing violent crime across the country and attacks against police from the political left.

Trump is scheduled to address FOP's National Board of Trustees fall meeting in Charlotte. The FOP, the world’s largest organization of law enforcement officers, endorsed Trump’s reelection bid in 2020, with its president saying on behalf of its 373,000 members that Trump had “made it crystal clear that he has our backs.”

The imagery of the former president and GOP nominee in a room of law enforcement officers offers Trump the platform to contrast their support with his characterization of Harris, a former San Francisco district attorney and California attorney general whom Trump has called the “ringleader” of a “Marxist attack on law enforcement” across the country.

“Kamala Harris will deliver crime, chaos, destruction and death,” Trump said last month in Michigan, one of many generalizations about an America under Harris. “You’ll see levels of crime that you’ve never seen before. ... I will deliver law, order, safety and peace.”

The FOP hasn't issued its official endorsement for the 2024 election, but other police groups have already lined up behind Trump. During another Charlotte rally, Trump in July won the endorsement of the National Organization of Police Organizations, whose leadership lauded his "steadfast and very public support for our men and women on the front lines."

In February, the International Union of Police Associations endorsed Trump, calling his support for officers “unmatched.” Last month, he won the backing of the Arizona Police Association, just days after the group endorsed Democrat Rep. Ruben Gallego over Trump ally Kari Lake in that state's Senate race.