What we’ve been waiting on is finally here. President Trump just announced a new media and technology group called “Trump Media & Technology Group” and they are launching a new social media alternative called “TRUTH Social” to fight against the tyranny of Big Tech:

Former President Donald Trump announced Wednesday the forthcoming "TRUTH Social," a social media network that aims to "stand up to the tyranny of Big Tech."

The app, which will begin a beta launch for invited guests in November 2021, is expected to make its full debut within the first quarter of 2022 and is a part of the newly established Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG).

Trump, who will serve as chairman of TMTG, released a statement announcing the planned arrival of the platform and insisted the effort will push back against platforms that lean left and that it will "give a voice to all."

"I created TRUTH Social and TMTG to stand up to the tyranny of Big Tech," Trump said. "We live in a world where the Taliban has a huge presence on Twitter, yet your favorite American President has been silenced. This is unacceptable"

"I am excited to send out my first TRUTH on TRUTH Social very soon," Trump added. "TMTG was founded with a mission to give a voice to all. I'm excited to soon begin sharing my thoughts on TRUTH Social and to fight back against Big Tech. Everyone asks me why doesn't someone stand up to Big Tech? Well, we will be soon!"

 NBC News political director Chuck Todd suggested that former President Trump is responsible for the media not covering the "problems" plaguing the Democratic Party. 

Appearing on "Sunday Today," Todd and host Willie Geist discussed the GOP-led election audit in Arizona which reaffirmed President Biden's victory and Trump's ongoing control over the Republican Party. 

"What is he doing now? Going after Republicans not supportive of him and then chasing the last election everywhere he goes?" Geist asked.

Todd chuckled at the question, which involved "trying to figure out what's in Donald Trump's head."

"It’s the same thing that has driven Donald Trump for 30 years. Obsession with people either on his side or not on his side," Todd told Geist. "So look, this is a — he’s creating a cult of personality movement or he has created a cult of personality movement. It’s not ideologically driven. It’s just driven by what’s good for Trump, as he believes is good for the Republican Party. What’s bad for Trump, he believes is bad for the Republican Party. And that’s how he’s operating. That’s how he’s picking candidates."

The "Meet the Press" moderator went on to declare Trump as the "single greatest asset the Democratic Party has right now." 

"Without Donald Trump in the way, I think the Democratic Party’s problems would be- would be a bit more in the spotlight, if you will," Todd said. "But Donald Trump, by dividing his party the way he’s done — look, it will be the singular reason why if Terry McAuliffe wins in Virginia, in this political environment, he will have Donald Trump to thank. So Donald Trump is a huge asset right now to the Democratic Party and President Biden."

CBN News interviewed President Trump and talked with him about his potential run in 2024 and why he might choose not to run:

I’d really love to see the Governor of Florida run for president but at this point I really don’t care whether it’s DeSantis or Trump. I’d be glad to vote for either of them in order to get the current fool out of the White House.

WATCH LIVE below as the ‘Save America Rally’ gets underway ahead of a speech by Donald Trump this afternoon at 7:00 pm.

“Are you ready for my EPIC Rally in GEORGIA?” Trump asked in an email message this week. I know I am. Georgia isn’t just A battleground state, it’s THE state where the battle of 2020 was fought the hardest. In the mid-terms, the fight will be as epic as we hope today’s rally will be.

Tune in below, and participate in the chat, as we watch along all day. (We will add more live stream options as they go live.)

During his speech, Trump repeatedly slammed President Biden’s handling of the Afghanistan withdrawal, calling it the "most appalling display of incompetence."

In the front row, Trump left 13 empty seats with roses placed atop them to pay tribute to the 13 U.S. service members who lost their lives during an ISIS-K suicide attack as the military was attempting to evacuate. 

"In their memory tonight we have 13 empty seats of honor right here in the front row," Trump told the cheering crowd. "Our hearts go out to the families of every service member that we have lost, and I’ve spoken to a lot of them. These are great, great people."

Trump starts by saying it’s hard to believe, but if true it’s definitely treason.

He also made a similar point that I made earlier today, regarding how absurd it was that Milley would even think that Trump might attack China. Trump said that never came up in any meetings and as I noted earlier, Trump was always very responsible and appropriate with military action. It was only a leftist fantasy that Trump would actually start attacking our enemies around the world, and apparently Milley fell for it. Which is no excuse for treason, by the way.

Watch the video for more:

"So, first of all, if it is actually true, which is hard to believe, that he would have called China and done these things and was willing to advise them of an attack or in advance of an attack, that's treason," Trump told host Sean Spicer on NewsmaxTV's "Spicer & Co." 

"I've had so many calls today saying that's treason, number one," Trump continued. Acknowledging he was tough on China regarding trade and COVID-19, he went on to describe the idea that would unilaterally attack China as "totally ridiculous."

In a statement released shortly after his interview on Newsmax, Trump called on Milley to step aside, floating a theory that Milley came up with the story himself and leaked it to Woodward and Costa, whom he described as journalists "who write fiction, not fact."

"For the record, I never even thought of attacking China—and China knows that. The people that fabricated the story are sick and demented, and the people who print it are just as bad. In fact, I’m the only President in decades who didn’t get the U.S. into a war—a well known fact that is seldom reported," Trump added.

This is something Joe Biden is constitutionally incapable of doing or being. And it’s ironic since the media have spent decades trying to craft this folksy downhome blue-collar image that Biden covets.

His problem is that he’s none of those things and it shows. You can’t sell what ain’t there. Conversely, they try and try to make Trump some distant oligarch but he has always been a man of the people and beloved by the people.

REAL people, like these blue collar, uniformed cops.

Watch as he takes questions, banters, then goes in for photos and selfies, jokes around, and generally enjoys the company of the officers as they enjoy his.

His remarks, and the Q&A.

Trump called the 20th anniversary of 9/11 a "very sad day for a lot of reasons," referring to both the attack and the botched withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan in recent weeks, and praised the brave NYPD officers.

"I grew up with you and you are New York's finest. You're incredible people. I know many of you," said Trump.

The former president also called Biden's withdrawal from Afghanistan "gross incompetence" and criticized other aspects of the U.S. withdrawal. 

When asked by a NYPC officer whether he'd run for president a second time, Trump responded, "That's a tough question."

"Actually, for me, it's an easy question. I mean, I know what I'm going to do, but I'm not supposed to be talking about it yet from the standpoint of campaign finance laws, which, frankly, are ridiculous," said Trump.

"But I think you're going to be happy," the former president said.

Former President Donald Trump released a video honoring the Americans who died on 9/11 on the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks, while also slamming President Biden’s handling of the U.S.’s withdrawal from Afghanistan. 

"This is a very sad day. September 11 represents great sorrow for our country. Many things were displayed that day, including most importantly the bravery of our police, fire and first responders of every kind. The job they did was truly unbelievable. We love them and we thank them," Trump said in a video message Saturday. 

The former president then launched into an attack on Biden, who "was made to look like a fool" during the U.S.’s withdrawal from Afghanistan last month.

"It is also a sad time for the way our war on those that did such harm to our country ended last week. The loss of 13 great warriors and the many more who were wounded, should never have happened," Trump said, referring to the U.S. 13 service members who were killed in Kabul on Aug. 26. 

"We had $85 billion of the finest and most sophisticated military equipment, taken from us without even a shot being fired. The leader of our country was made to look like a fool."

Trump went on to say that the Biden administration implemented "bad planning" and "incredible weakness" during the withdrawal because leaders "truly didn't understand what was happening."

"This is the 20th year of this war, and should have been a year of victory and honor, and strength. Instead, Joe Biden and his inept administration surrendered in defeat. We will live on, but sadly our country will be wounded for a long period of time. We will struggle to recover from the embarrassment this incompetence has caused. Do not fear, however, America will be made great again," he concluded.

That is exactly right. The fact that Biden’s fatal disaster was one the eve of this terrible anniversary is another attack on America. One that came from within. And those attacks from within are continuing.

He’s right to link the remembrance with the truth about Biden. Two things we must never forget are the attacks then, and the attacks now.

Note: We held this video for today so we could post it on the anniversary. Please feel free to use the comments as a semi-open thread for sharing your own 9/11 thoughts and remembrances in addition to any discussion about President Trump’s message. We will also have a separate remembrance thread if you’d prefer to share there.

Former President Donald Trump addressed the attack at the Kabul airport in Afghanistan on August 26, 2021. He said the attack “would not have happened if I were your president.”

As one nation, America mourns the loss of our brave and brilliant American service members in a savage and barbaric terrorist attack in Afghanistan. These noble American warriors laid down their lives in the line of duty. They sacrifice themselves so the country that they loved, racing against time to rescue their fellow citizens from harm’s way. They died as American heroes and our nation will honor their memory forever. I want to express my deepest condolences to the families of those we have lost. Today all Americans grieve alongside you. Together we also pray that God will heal the other courageous American service members who were wounded in this heinous attack. In addition, our hearts are with the families of all the innocent civilians who died, and with the many men, women, and children who were terribly injured in this act of evil.

This tragedy should never have taken place, it should never have happened, and it would not have happened if I were your president. Over the past few weeks I know that many Americans have felt profound sorrow and even pain watching the events taking place in Afghanistan, and perhaps none more so than the veterans of that 20 year war. Many of them answered the call proudly and without hesitation after the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001. Every American who served in Afghanistan has made tremendous sacrifices for our country. On behalf of your fellow citizens, I want you to know that those sacrifices were not made in vain. We know what you did, we know how brave you were, and we thank you, we salute you, and we honor you for all time. I hope that every American will join me in continuing to pray for the safe return of all US citizens and soldiers from Afghanistan in the coming days. Thank you, God bless you, and God bless America.

In an exclusive interview Thursday Trump warned host Sean Hannity that Biden's "wokeness" and that of his top generals like Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mark Milley are misinterpreting the power and proclivities of the rank and file military members and incoherently shuffling their priorities:

"Biden and the woke generals are just woke. I was saying even at the end of my time, I was seeing letters being sent out about equality and all of these different things -- the soldiers, they want to fight, they want to be prepared to fight, they want to be soldiers, but the woke generals, it has got into a level that nobody can even believe," he said.

In Afghanistan, Trump said Biden and the commanders sought to withdraw as he had but that they did so in the exact backward order: "They forgot one thing, they forgot to take the people with them and the merchandise with them, meaning they forgot to take the greatest military equipment anywhere in the world with them, and it's hard to believe, actually, because a child would have understood. You get the military out last. A child would have understood that. How could they have done this to our country?"

That move, he said, constituted one of the worst decisions by a sitting president in United States history, as 13 service members are now dead and Kabul continues in turmoil:

"It's so sad. It's probably from the standpoint of military tactics and just embarrassment, the most embarrassing thing that has ever happened to our country; we look like fools all over the world, we are weak, we are pathetic, we are being led by people that have no idea what they are doing," Trump said.

"They take the military out and then they say now we will bring out the people, then all of a sudden, the Taliban walks in – We had the Taliban so under control they would not have moved without getting our approval. We had an incredible agreement. They weren't killing our soldiers."

Trump noted Biden even obliquely referenced his predecessor's success in that regard, pointing to the portion of the president's remarks where he acknowledged the Taliban hadn't killed an American service member in 18 months because of the deal struck in 2020.

"I want to tell you, I think our soldiers, even civilians, I think our soldiers are in tremendous danger. I think airplanes flying in and out of the airport are in tremendous danger. [The Taliban] have the best equipment, best rockets, best tanks and helicopters, Apache helicopters, a lot of them, that are immensely valuable -- and by the way, Russia wants them because they want to examine them because we have far superior technology, and China wants them," Trump warned.

"This is the dumbest thing -- I think it was the dumbest move anybody has ever made perhaps in the history of our country, allowing this to happen, taking the military out and then say ‘Oh, we hope to get the people out'."

Trump criticized CENTCOM Commander Gen. Kenneth "Frank" McKenzie Jr. for remarking Thursday that the U.S. "share[s] a common purpose" with the Taliban in terms of evacuating fully by August 31:

"As long as we keep that common purpose alive, they've been useful to work with. They've cut some of our security concerns down and they've been useful to work with going forward," the commander said.

"When I hear General McKenzie say that the Taliban is going to protect us, the Taliban is the enemy. I dealt with the leader of the Taliban. This is not a very simple man, this is not a boy scout," Trump fumed.

He went on to tell host Sean Hannity that in personal discussions and negotiations with Taliban leader Abdul Baradar, he made clear to the militant that any untoward acts would be met with a tenfold response by the U.S. military – contrasting that stance with Biden's deferential position.

"We had them totally under control. Every time we saw movement, we'd hit them with an F-18, and the movement stopped," Trump said.

"But we had very little of that because of Abdul, who I spoke to … Abdul would not let anybody do anything."

He went on to describe how Baradar likely heard the news Biden was withdrawing with haste earlier this month:

"I can tell you what happened, in my opinion, they went to him and the other leaders and they said ‘the American military is leaving, they are pulling out,’ and he probably looked at the people who said it and said 'You've got to be -- there's no way that's happening'," Trump surmised. 

"They couldn't believe it. And then they sent some fighters in and there was zero resistance. Before, they would've gotten blown away"

Trump added that his administration led the defeat of ISIS because of "great generals" on the ground – and not what he called "television generals" stateside who make the media rounds.

He added that he would not have allowed the abandonment of the Soviet-era Bagram Air Force base, underlining its strategic location – near Afghan borders with China, Pakistan and Tajikistan and not far from Russia.

In what seemed like a preview of a potential stump speech should former President Trump eventually follow through on his flirtations to launch a 2024 White House bid, Trump once again took aim at his successor on Saturday night.

"One year ago this month in my nomination speech," Trump told the large crowd of supporters at a large rally in Cullman, Alabama, harkening back to his 2020 Republican National Convention address, "I warned the entire country of the disastrous consequences of a Biden presidency."

Trump then blasted President Biden, criticizing him over crime, inflation and the haphazard evacuation of U.S. personnel and allies from Afghanistan after repressive Taliban forces rolled into Kabul, the central Asian country’s capital and largest city.

"This is a great stain on the reputation of our country," the former president charged. 

Trump, who struck a deal with the Taliban in February of last year that called for all U.S. troops to depart Afghanistan by May 2021 and who during his watch reduced U.S. forces to their lowest level in Afghanistan in two decades, on Saturday called the Taliban "great negotiators, tough fighters."

Trump also criticized Biden for failing to "stop the virus," as he pointed to the surge in COVID cases due to the highly contagious delta variant.

"Could you imagine if I were president and the virus was surging back?" the former president said before slamming Biden for "reimposing mask mandates and threatening new restrictions."

The then-president’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic as it swept the nation last year was a key factor in Biden’s victory over Trump in last November’s election.

While the former president’s verbal attacks on his successor were well received by the crowd, as expected, Trump did encounter push back when he advocated for vaccines.

"I believe totally in your freedoms, I do, you gotta do what you gotta do, but I recommend take the vaccines. I did it. It's good," Trump said, eleciting brief boos from his supporters.

"That's OK, that's all right," the former president added. "But I happen to take the vaccine. If it doesn't work, you'll be the first to know. But it is working. You do have your freedoms, you have to maintain that."

Vaccination rates in Alabama lag behind the national average, and the state is facing hospital and emergency room overcrowding as new COVID cases surge. A local state of emergency was declared in Cullman on Thursday, two days before Trump held his rally in the northern Alabama city.