Trump strikes different chord than Clinton with veterans

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A much more vocal and enthusiastic crowd welcomed Donald Trump to the Charlotte Convention Center Tuesday, one day after Hillary Clinton addressed the same crowd.

The crowds were a litmus test on how both candidates stand in veterans' eyes.

Watch Trump's speech below: 

Clinton appeared to stay with the script and got an occasional applause.
 
Meanwhile, Trump was interacting with the crowd and got chants of "lock her up" in response.
 
"To think she was here yesterday," Trump said. "I guess she didn't do very well."
 
At one point, veterans in the front row of the convention hall gave a standing ovation.
 
"He gets the crowd involved," Jim Spiker, a veteran attending the speech, said. "She was like a lower approach, everything was choreographed. I like the fact [Trump] can adlib."
 
Most veterans told Eyewitness News that, after the two days of speeches, they were pro-Trump. Others didn't hear what they were looking for to change their minds.
 
"Tell us more of what you're going to do for us, instead of all the trash talking," veteran servicewoman Lora Laee said.
 
Veteran Clinton supporters agreed the crowd was riled up, but said it'll take more than their fellow veterans' support to make them budge.
 
"The truth is that Trump has a displayed a pattern of disrespect toward those who have served our country," said Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts, D-Charlotte and State Sen. Jeff Jackson, D-Mecklenburg, in a joint statement. "He has lied about his donations to veterans' charities and shown contempt toward prisoners of war, claiming that Senator John McCain is 'not a war hero' because he spent five years in captivity."

Before Trump arrived presenters told the audience they couldn't hold up signs, something that they didn't have to tell the crowd Monday.

Channel 9 saw veterans wearing shirts supporting Trump and the crowd was much more enthusiastic with Trump than it was with Hillary Clinton.

National security, defense policy and law and order were all parts of Trump’s message Tuesday.

He spoke to more than 5,000 veterans, but veterans and their supporters all across country were listening in.

By Trump's standards the remarks were very short.

While on stage he made a lot of promises, including a 10-step plan to help veterans.

He said he'll even add a hotline for veteran's complaints in the White House and said if the person answering doesn't act he'll take the call directly.

Clinton did not mention Trump by name, but he was far from taking the same route.

“Look at her emails, which put America’s entire national security at risk. Lock her up! And to think she was here yesterday, I guess she didn't do very well," Trump said.

While the crowd was much more animated about Trump, it doesn't mean all the veterans liked what they heard.

Thousands of veterans are in town for day four of the Veterans of Foreign Wars National Convention.

Trump, like Clinton, is placing a big focus on North Carolina -- one of several battleground states -- but we have not seen him organize a grassroots campaign in the state yet, like Clinton has.

Channel 9’s political analysts said Trump needed to use this opportunity to energize his base in North Carolina.

Those analysts said that most veterans lean Republican, so it will be interesting to see how they respond to Trump versus Clinton.

When Clinton made her way to the convention Monday, police did not shut down any major roads, and that looked to be the case again Tuesday.

The VFW convention is not open to the public, only VFW members, and they were searched at the front door.

One local veteran Channel 9 spoke with said he's glad police took the visit seriously.

“I don't mind at all, them searching me and stuff. I don't want anybody sitting beside me and blowing us up,” said Jack Campbel.

Both Trump and his running mate, Mike Pence, were in Winston-Salem Monday, focusing more on the economy.

“Seven and a half years of this administration has weakened America, its place in the world, and stifled our nation's economy," said Trump. "We're gonna bring jobs back to North Carolina because your jobs, your manufacturers, we gotta bring those jobs back.”

During his visit to Roanoke, Virginia Monday, Trump was greeted by a handful of protesters, who lined up across the street from his event.

They held signs that said things like “Anyone but Trump.”

A much larger crowd gathered Monday evening in Winston-Salem. Protesters held signs and chanted, but overall they were peaceful.

CMPD said protesters have the right to be there and express their opinion, as long as they remain peaceful. Officers said they're prepared for anything, but not many protesters showed up Tuesday.

Trump told the crowd in Winston-Salem that he loves North Carolina and touted his businesses in the state, then went on to criticize rival Hillary Clinton and her vice presidential pick, Sen. Tim Kaine.
 
Trump told supporters he's the best choice for the economy, national security and protecting constitutional rights.

"We're tired of being the country where our jobs are being taken away, where our military is being depleted," Trump said.

McCrory on Trump: 'We need an outsider' 

Gov. Pat McCrory joined Donald Trump at a campaign rally for the first time Monday night to present a unified ticket for the fall elections in North Carolina.

"It's going to take an outsider to clean up Washington, D.C.," McCrory told the crowd after he took the stage following other state Republicans.

Days after accepting the Republican presidential nomination, Trump visited the important Southern battleground with his running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence. The 8 p.m. rally allowed them to capture state voters' attention on the first night of the Democratic National Convention.

When McCrory took the stage, he got loud round of applause for a joke about a state law limiting protections for LGBT people and directing transgender people to restrooms corresponding to the sex on their birth certificates in many public buildings.

Among his first remarks the crowd, McCrory told audience members to be safe and note where the exits are.

He added: "If any of you need to use the restroom ..." Then he paused.

The crowd loudly applauded the reference to the law known as House Bill 2.

After the cheers died down, he said: "And if you have any questions, go to the Philadelphia convention where all the Democrats are!"

McCrory didn't appear at Trump's previous campaign events in North Carolina, but his appearance represented a unified party going into the fall elections. The Republican governor is in a tight re-election battle with his Democratic challenger, North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper.

In touting Trump, McCrory repeatedly said: "We need an outsider."

McCrory introduced Pence as a friend he's known for years, and the two exchanged a hearty hug and handshake. Pence and Trump then closed out the night.

Before that, speakers included Republican members of Congress Mark Meadows, Virginia Foxx, Renee Ellmers, as well as Republican U.S. Sen. Richard Burr.

Burr was among the first speakers, firing the crowd up by saying: "Welcome to a red state that, like a lot of other red states, is going to elect Donald Trump!"

He also commended the attendees in an arena at fairgrounds in Winston-Salem by saying: "You're not listening to who the national media wants as president."

Several speakers made jokes at Hillary Clinton's expense, punctuated by chants of "Lock Her Up!"

North Carolina was a closely contested state in the past two presidential elections, adding to its status as a battleground this election. Trump has already made several appearances in the state.

Cooper released an online ad Monday attacking McCrory and Trump that included footage of the presidential candidate praising the governor along with news footage about the fallout from the North Carolina law limiting protections for LGBT people.

"Trump and McCrory: Wrong for North Carolina," reads a statement at the end of the ad.

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