DONALD TRUMP SAID from behind a podium at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday that he’s launching a campaign to take back the White House in 2024. It wasn’t exactly a rousing announcement. The former president seemed bored as he squinted at his teleprompter and regurgitated well-trod talking points about immigration, crime, the economy, and more, mixing in several rambling tangents.

The speech was so dull that even Sean Hannity cut away from it.
Trump’s biggest fanboy in conservative media wouldn’t dare criticize his performance, however, instead bringing in Pete Hegseth and Mike Huckabee to drool over the former president’s announcement. “This looks like Trump in as good a form as you have ever seen him,” Hegseth said dutifully, with Huckabee declaring Trump “unbeatable” in 2024.

All the while, Trump continued to drone, so much so that his fans in attendance sat down, prompting him to say he felt “guilty” that they had remained standing for so long in the first place. The ranting persisted, though. Hannity brought on Monica Crowley, Rep. Jim Jordan, and others for more analysis before finally checking back in on the former president, now well clear of anything resembling prepared remarks.

He was still going when Laura Ingraham took over. She, too, had to cut away. “We’re going back to former President Trump when news warrants,” she said as Trump complained that gangsters like Al Capone, Billy the Kid, and Jesse James received fewer subpoenas than his son Eric.

Hannity and company may have gushed about the power of Trump’s address despite deeming it not worthy to broadcast in full, but not all conservatives were impressed. “This is one of the most low-energy, uninspiring speeches I’ve ever heard from Trump,” Sarah Matthews, a former Trump White House spokesperson, tweeted. “Even the crowd seems bored. Not exactly what you want when announcing a presidential run.”

“You try being high energy when you’re running for President primarily to try to avoid indictment!” added former Trump White House communications director Alyssa Farah Griffin.

Fortunately for insomniacs across America, Trump’s newly launched 2024 campaign will feature “a multi-day series of political events,” according to Axios.