Former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally, on Aug. 8 at Windham High School. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

WINDHAM – Former President Donald Trump spoke about improving the quality of life for Granite State veterans during his fourth trip to New Hampshire in this election cycle.

“To every veteran in this room, we salute you,” he said during the Aug. 8 rally at Windham High School, adding that he has been endorsed by more than 100 veteran organizations across the state.

Trump told supporters that veterans were “abused and plagued by scandals” under the administration of then-President Barack Obama.

“The [Veterans Administration] employees were caught stealing drugs, but all that changed when we arrived at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue,” he said.

Trump said he responded by extending the Veterans Choice Program and terminating 10,000 VA employees. However, he said President Joe Biden is in the process of reinstating 5,000 VA employees at a cost of $200 million.

“It breaks your heart,” said Trump. “We were doing great until Biden came along.”

Trump also said that under the Obama Administration, veterans would become terminally ill while waiting months to see a doctor.

“We slashed VA waiting time by 33 percent,” he said, adding that the VA satisfaction rating climbed to 92 percent during his time in office.

Looking ahead, Trump vowed to provide veterans with same-day mental health services, eradicate veteran homelessness, reinstate VA accountability and construct a VA hospital in New Hampshire.

“No longer will New Hampshire be the only state without a VA hospital,” he said. “That’s what you get with those Democrats. Joe Biden puts bureaucrats first, I put veterans first.”

Also during the rally, Trump criticized Biden’s strategy for ending the 20-year war in Afghanistan, saying 18 months had gone by without an American casualty. However, 13 U.S. soldiers were killed during the American withdrawal.

“It was the single most embarrassing day in the history of our country,” he said.

In addition, Trump blamed Gov. Chris Sununu for losing New Hampshire in the 2020 election.

“We could’ve won this state, but we never got help from the governor,” he said.

The latest poll figures from Morning Consult show Trump with 59 percent of the vote in the upcoming Republican Primary Election. He is followed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has 16 percent and Vivek Ramaswamy with eight percent of the vote.

“We’re killing it in the polls by 40 or 50 points,” said Trump. “We’re so far ahead of everyone else.”

However, history tells a different story. According to the Pew Research Center, six former presidents have run for nonconsecutive terms. Within that group, only New York Democrat Grover Cleveland was successful.

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