Donald Trump 2016 presidential campaign launch speech

On June 16, 2015, businessman Donald Trump gave a speech thatlaunched his 2016 presidential campaign. The speech received both acclaim and criticism, and the campaign ultimately culminated in his victory in the 2016 United States presidential election.

At the time, very few thought that Trump was a viable challenger for the presidency. He had been speculated to enter the campaign, but his chances of winning were generally dismissed.

The speech went viral for Trump's portrayal of illegal immigrants from Mexico and other countries:

The U.S. has become a dumping ground for everybody else’s problems. . . . When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. . . . They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people. But I speak to border guards and they tell us what we’re getting. And it only makes common sense. It only makes common sense. They’re sending us not the right people.

Trump's portrayal, widely perceived as racist, led to much media coverage from people opposed to the characterization. The quantity of free media thus acquired far outweighed the attention paid to his primary opponents, and within weeks he led polls for the 2016 Republican Party presidential primaries, a lead he would never relinquish.