Donald Trump says it’s not all about him. No, seriously.

Campaigning in Nashville, Tennessee, Trump on Saturday paid homage to his supporters — claiming they are a part of “a movement” and using colorful language to beg for their support.


“This is a movement,” said Trump, who often speaks about himself in campaign appearances. “I don’t want it to be about me. This is about common sense. It’s about doing the right thing.”

Trump also paid tribute to his setting, a country music hotbed, and insisted there needed to be a greater emphasis on "law and order." And, as has become customary, he took shots at Jeb Bush, the former Florida governor who is a rival for the Republican nomination.

Beyond the bragging, Trump’s appearance represented something more tangible: evidence of a campaign that has grown more tactically serious as it wears on.

His speech — full, as ever, with a mix of taunts and asides — was in front of the Presidential Presence Convention of the National Federation of Republican Assemblies. The group describes itself as “a grassroots movement of Republicans that seeks to restore the conservative principles of the Goldwater / Reagan Republicans.”

In other words, the sorts of Republicans whose support Trump will have to solidify as the nominating contest continues. On Sunday, Ted Cruz’s father, Rafael Cruz, is scheduled to lead a prayer breakfast at the convention.

While Trump claimed to be vessel for something bigger, he used long stretches of his speech to tout his smarts, his business savvy and his “vision.”

One point of emphasis — and opportunity for a shot at Bush — was foreign policy.

“I said don’t go into Iraq even though I’m a very militaristic person,” he said. “I’m much more militaristic than Bush, even the brother.”

Trump said he deserved credit for predicting that the war would go poorly.

“Normally I wouldn’t say this, but I need your frickin’ votes, you understand that?” he said to cheers.

Mixed in with Trump’s talk of a “silent majority” was a call for “law and order.” He decried the rioting that took place in Baltimore in April in response to the death of a young black man in police custody.

“The police were not allowed to protect people,” said Trump. “We have to be tough. We have to be smart. … I know cities where police are afraid to even talk to people.”

Trump said he has seen policing-related incidents that are “disgusting” and “horrible,” an apparent reference to the deaths of unarmed black Americans at the hands of police officers that have received significant attention over the past year.





But he said that “99.9 percent” of what police do is good. “The problem is the good work doesn’t get shown on television,” he said.

No Trump campaign stop is complete without a few shots at the media. At one point, as Trump was criticizing CNN’s coverage of a fundraiser he held on Friday — “We had this incredible event and they destroyed it,” he said — a supporter got his attention by shouting about “the criminal media.”

Trump used it as an opportunity to again emphasize the importance of his supporters. He attributed his continued lead in Republican primary polls to the intelligence of his supporters.

“The reason is people in this country are smart. They don’t believe a lot of what they see in the media.”

Trump professed his admiration for several country music stars — including Trace Adkins — who have appeared on his reality show “The Apprentice.” And he told the story of buying a property on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan from Nashville-based retailer Genesco.