Former President Donald Trump had a rocky appearance before a rowdy crowd at the Libertarian National Convention in Washington, D.C., on Saturday. From receiving loud boos to making promises about freeing a notorious drug kingpin, here are the five wildest moments from Trump’s speech.

1. Trump gets booed right from the jump.

As soon as he stepped on the stage, Trump was mercilessly jeered at by convention attendees, some of whom waved “Free Ross [Ulbricht]” signs and gave Trump the “thumbs down.” One sign read, “MAGA = Socialist.” The former president  tried to put on a brave face and scanned the crowd as it drowned out his signature entrance song, God Bless the U.S.A.

It was a far cry from the adoring crowds Trump was used to addressing.

“A lot of people asked why I came to speak at this Libertarian Convention, and, you know, it’s an interesting question, isn’t it?” Trump said at the lectern while chuckling. “But we’re going to have a lot of fun!”

Trying to appeal to the crowd, Trump said, “In the last year, I’ve been indicted by the government on 91 different things. So, if I wasn’t a Libertarian before, I sure as hell am a Libertarian now.”

That comment received a mixture of boos and cheers. Trump reportedly cut his speech short, speaking for only about 30 minutes, instead of his usual 90+ minutes.

2. Trump promises Libertarians a cabinet post.

In another effort to appease the crowd, Trump announced that if elected, he will appoint Libertarians to posts within his administration. The jeers continued, however, as Trump made his promise to the party.

“Now, I think you should nominate me, or at least vote for me, and we should win together. You heard those words: nominate or vote, vote for me,” Trump said, continuing:

Because the Libertarians want to vote for me and most of them will. And it’s very important, because we have to get rid of the worst president in history. And together we will, and without it, there’s a risk that we could have four more years, we won’t have a country left.

So, what is the purpose of the Libertarian Party getting 3%? What is the reason to take a chance of having this horrible president destroy our country, which he will do in less than four years? It’s not gonna take four years. That is why I’m committing to you tonight that I will put a Libertarian in my cabinet. And also, Libertarian in senior posts. Pretty good. That’s pretty big.

3. Trump promises to free a notorious drug kingpin.

Trump made a promise to free Silk Road founder and Libertarian cause célèbre Ross Ulbricht, who is serving a double-life sentence for drug trafficking, hacking, and money laundering through his website that was hosted on the Dark Web.

“And if you vote for me on day one, I will commute the sentence of Ross Ulbricht to a sentence of time served,” Trump said to cheers and chants of “Free Ross!”

“He’s already served 11 years. We’re gonna get him home. We’re gonna get him home,” Trump said.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Ulbricht used the handle “Dread Pirate Roberts” to cause “more than $200 million in illegal drugs and other illicit goods” to be “bought and sold on the site.”

At the time of Ulbricht’s arrest, federal prosecutor Preet Bharara said, “Make no mistake: Ulbricht was a drug dealer and criminal profiteer who exploited people’s addictions and contributed to the deaths of at least six young people.”

Ulbricht was 30 when he was convicted. He tweeted from prison this spring:

Today I turn 40.

I pray I’ll get a second chance at freedom before this next decade ends.

— Ross Ulbricht (@RealRossU) March 27, 2024

4. Trump fires back at angry crowd.

Trump quoted from an American Spectator piece that argued “The Libertarian Party should nominate Trump for President of the United States.” That suggestion drew furious boos, and Trump returned fire.

“That’s nice. Only if you want to win, only if you want to win. Maybe you don’t want to win … If you want to lose, don’t do that. Keep getting your three percent every four years.”

The Convention ended up nominating Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for president on Sunday. Kennedy is polling way above 3%, coming in around 13% to Trump’s 37% and Biden’s 39%, according to a recent NBC poll.

However, the Kennedy family has come out against RFK Jr.’s candidacy.

Rory Kennedy told MSNBC she feared her brother “takes many more votes from Biden than he does from Trump. And I think this election is going to come down to a handful of votes in a handful of states, and I’m concerned that his campaign and running for office as an independent is going to lead to Trump’s election.”

5. Trump’s sycophants try to spin speech as a W.

Trump knocked it out of the park tonight at the #LibertarianConvention.

Well done, sir! pic.twitter.com/7eGhrXNdNd

— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) May 26, 2024

You’d never know by listening to his MAGA faithful that Trump was practically booed off the stage during most of his speech at the Libertarian National Convention.

Utah Sen. Mike Lee (R), who himself was heckled at the convention, posted a video to X shortly after Trump’s speech, and wrote that the former president “knocked it out of the park”:

Ok, so I just finished speaking at the Libertarian Convention and then President Trump spoke right after me. This was amazing. No other president in history, to my knowledge, has ever showed up at another political party’s convention, openly asked for their endorsement, and just really hit the ground running. Well done, President Trump. I think you won the hearts and minds of a whole lot of Libertarians out there and a whole lot of other Americans.

Vivek Ramaswamy, who’s said to be on Trump’s short list for V.P., defended Trump after the Biden-Harris campaign mocked his speech.

Shame on Biden. Real men face people who disagree with them, instead of hiding in their bunkers. https://t.co/sqaAQeBfdE

— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) May 26, 2024

The Libertarians, themselves, weren’t quite as bowled over with the former president.

Semafor reported:

Most of the paid-up members of the Libertarian Party were unhappy with the Trump appearance. At best, it was a chance to push a potential president on their issues — which worked, when it came to Ulbricht. At worst, it made the party look like an appendage of the MAGA movement.

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