Trump gives first post-election speech at gala, celebrates Cabinet picks

Delivering his first public speech since winning the 2024 election, President-elect Donald Trump touted his victory and praised his allies at the America First Policy Institute Gala at Mar-a-Lago in Florida.

Calling this year’s the “most consequential election,” Trump recalled how he lost the popular vote in 2016 but won it this time around.

“They would say, ‘he didn’t win the popular vote.’ And we won the popular vote by records now, which so nobody can say that anymore about us,” Trump said.

He also celebrated his newly selected Cabinet members and senior administration officials, many of whom were in attendance.

Newly announced picks who attended the annual gala on Thursday evening, including Elon Musk, Vivek Ramaswamy, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum.

Notably, Trump did not give a shout out to former Rep. Matt Gaetz, who he had announced as his attorney general and who was also in attendance.

As he provided pleasantries to several members in the room, Trump transitioned into complimenting Musk, with whom he’s spent a significant amount of time since his victory.

“We have a man who has a seriously high IQ. You know, I’m a person that believes in high IQs, and his is about as high as they get,” Trump said, thanking him for campaigning in Pennsylvania on his behalf.

Trump then touted his pairing of Ramasamy and Musk to lead the Department of Government Efficiency.

“They’re going to be saving a lot of money and making our country stronger and better. And they’ll be coming out with individual reports. But a big one toward the end. And you put those two together, it’s going to be really great. So we look forward to seeing and working with Elon and that’ll be a great experience,” Trump said.

Trump briefly mentioned his choice of RFK Jr. for the secretary of Health and Human Services.

“He wants to make people healthy. It’s driven him pretty wild over the last number of years,” Trump said, describing the position in a roundabout way: “And today I nominated him for, I guess — if you like health, and if you like people that live a long time, it’s the most important position.”

However, he added a word of caution: “I just looked at the news reports. People like you, Bobby. Don’t get too popular, Bobby.”

At the end of his remarks, Trump blurted out that Burgum would be appointed Secretary of Interior. The formal announcement is due on Friday, and Trump teased that he would announce his pick for Secretary of Energy then, too.

“Hi, Doug. He’s going to be announced tomorrow. And we have somebody else that’s probably coming up with him to be announced, who’s a big one. And we’re going to do things with energy and with land interior. That is going to be incredible. And so, I look forward to doing the formal announcement,” Trump teased.

Trump also joked that his term’s official start date should be marked as Nov. 6, claiming that the economy is already doing better since his victory.

“You have to start my term from November 5th, okay? Or November 6th if you want … November 5th, because the market’s gone through the roof. Enthusiasms doubled. It’s doubled in the last short while,” Trump said.

It’s notable that the president-elect chose to deliver his first public speech since his victory at an event for America First Policy Institute, signaling the organization’s role in Trump’s forthcoming agenda.

“I really want to congratulate Linda, you and Brooke, for the job you’ve done. And it’s an honor to be here,” Trump closed, complimenting the AFPI executives.

Trump was introduced by “Rocky” actor Sylvester Stallone, who delivered brief remarks that compared the president-elect to his own legacy film character and then to George Washington. Notably, Vice President Kamala Harris held her final campaign rally on the iconic “Rocky steps” in Philadelphia on the eve of the election.

Before Trump took the stage, speakers included AFPI President Brook Rollins, AFPI board chair and Trump transition co-chair Linda McMahon, Argentine President Javier Millei, Ramaswamy and Larry Kudlow.

After Trump spoke, Musk delivered a short speech as well, doubling down on his promise to gut the federal government.

Trump’s decision to deliver his first full speech on camera at the America First Policy Institute gala symbolized a move away from his campaign to his transition efforts – and a celebration of the AFPI’s work for four years to quietly prepare for such a moment, building out Trump-aligned policy agenda for his second term and housing hundreds of former Trump administration officials who are now ready to go into his second administration.

The ballroom was full of Trump allies of big and small names.

Musk sat at a table at the front of the ballroom with Burgum, Ramawamy, Howard Lutnick and others named as Trump’s senior White House officials, like Dan Scavino, Stephen Miller and James Blair. Gaetz was seen chatting with Kennedy.

Reps. Ronny Jackson of Texas and Byron Donalds of Florida, whom Trump called a “star” in his speech, were seen seated together at a table farther back, while former Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal was spotted mingling in the crowd ahead of the program.

Donald Trump Jr., Kimberly Guilfoyle, Kellyanne Conway, Tulsi Gabbard and House Speaker Mike Johnson also attended the event.