Trump thanks supporters ‘win, lose, or draw’

Donald Trump took a more muted tone during a Monday campaign rally just hours before his unique candidacy faces its first public referendum.

In a departure from the confidence and bluster that have typified his well-attended stump speeches, Trump made the last-minute plea to his supporters to turn out, cognizant of the risks of his strategy that entails turning out largely new voters who have never caucused before.

{mosads}And he began to lay out a rationale in case of a loss.

“Win, lose, or draw, I love you all,” Trump told the crowd.

“This is where we start, this is Day 1. We are going to take back our country from these incompetent politicians who don’t know what they are doing.”

He encouraged his supporters to come caucus to start the “political revolution,” a phrase most often used by Democratic White House hopeful Bernie Sanders to describe his insurgent campaign.  

“They all say that the more people that come out, the better we are going to do,” the billionaire businessman said.

“We are leading in all the polls, we are leading Iowa, but it doesn’t mean anything. You have to go out tonight and caucus.”

In a campaign that has befuddled establishment observers, no one knows what to expect of the man who has dominated the GOP presidential race for more than six months. A loss in Iowa, which could come at the hands of Ted Cruz, could call into question Trump’s ability to turn high poll numbers into votes, as well as give his chief rival significant momentum.

Since Trump is relying on many first-time caucusgoers, political pundit sees turnout as essential as he looks to convert his historic polling numbers into a winning performance on caucus night.

At his rally, Trump skipped the recitation of recent polling, which has become a mainstay of his rallies, calling Monday’s caucuses the “ultimate poll.” But he kept his eye on New Hampshire, the next state to hold a nominating contest, noting that a new poll has him up in the Granite State and briefly touching on the addiction problems faced by the state.

Trump also chided his opponents, specifically Cruz and Jeb Bush, for spending significantly more money on their organizations. The GOP front-runner has faced significant questions throughout his rise about whether his staff is organized well enough on the ground to turn out his supporters. 

“I hear they have all these great ground games, people pouring in in buses and trucks, they are spending the money they are given by the special interests and lobbyists,” the real estate mogul said.

“I’m very proud of something — I’ve spent less money than anybody else and I have the best results, I’m number one. That’s what I want to do for this country.”

Despite these departures from the typical stump energy, Trump did spend a significant piece of his speech criticizing his rivals and ticking through his policy positions. He accused Cruz of wanting to end ethanol businesses in Iowa, while promising to protect Christianity from the “siege” it faces and shoring up gun rights in the wake of prominent mass shootings. 

He also defended his decision to skip last week’s GOP debate in Iowa in favor of hosting an event nearby for veterans amid a spat with Fox News. Trump presented a $100,000 check, printed out on gigantic paper, from the event’s proceeds to a veterans group Americans for Independent Living.

Trump gave two representatives from that group a few moments to speak at the rally and then turned the microphone over to his daughter, Ivanka, who thanked Iowans for their hospitality and rallied their supporters hours before caucuses begin.