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Mia Love gives concession speech criticizing Trump and McAdams

Posted at 6:19 PM, Nov 26, 2018
and last updated 2018-11-26 20:20:23-05

SALT LAKE CITY — The concession part of Congresswoman Mia Love's concession speech took about 20 seconds.

"I reached out to Ben over the weekend and congratulated him," she said, "I wish him well."

With that out of the way, Love got down to business.

She addressed an insult from President Trump, who in post-election day news conferences suggested she owed him an invitation to Utah because she called him "all the time," about freeing Utahn Josh Holt from a prison in Venezuela.

"I am proud of the fact that I nagged the President every day to bring Josh Holt home," Love said, adding, "This [the president's comments] gave me a real vision of his world as it is. No real relationships, just convenient transactions. That is an insufficient way to implement sincere service and policy."

That critique extended to Love's concerns about the Republican party's failure to open itself up to minorities.

"You see we feel like politicians claim they know what's best for us at a safe distance, yet they're never willing to take us home," Love said, while emphasizing that she believes conservative policies are better at helping minority communities suffering with poverty, even though it's the Democrats who actually make those communities feel welcome.

The other group coming up repeatedly in Love's comments: the unborn. Opposition to abortion came up at least four times throughout Love's speech.

"I've sworn to protect life at all stages of development," said Love.

From the start, the speech pointed forward with big ideas and a promise to continue working to implement them, but it ended looking back, believing that her campaign focused on policy while her opponent focused on destroying her reputation.

"My ethics, my record lied about, tarnished and repeated over and over again on TV right in front of our children," Love said, adding about her opponent, Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams, "I believe that we have elected a wolf in sheep's clothing."

McAdams, now Congressman-elect said he was disappointed with Love's remarks, but he hopes to work with her.

"With campaigns sometimes you talk about differences, but now is a time to come together and talk about what we share and how we can come together," McAdams said.