There was no escalator like last time, no offensive nicknames like always, and none of the awkward dancing that sometimes features, but supporters got exactly what they wanted in Florida on Tuesday: the announcement that Donald Trump was running for the White House again.

The setting was a little more sedate than the windswept Make America Great Again rallies in farmers' fields or in cavernous aircraft hangers on the outskirts of a midwestern city.

But it was Trump all the way, with American flags, family members, advisors, and members of his private club packing the gilded ballroom of his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida.

Repeatedly, the former president's often dark, frequently triumphalist speech was interrupted with chants of "Trump, Trump, Trump," as the tycoon-turned-TV star lapped up the adoration.

And when he finally got to the moment they had all been waiting for — "I am tonight announcing my candidacy for president of the United States" — the room erupted.

One of America's most divisive figures in recent decades reeled off what he considered his accomplishments during four chaotic years in Washington.

It was, he said a time when "Our nation was at the pinnacle of power, prosperity, and prestige, towering above all rivals."

In the 22 months since he left the White House, begrudingly handing over the keys to Joe Biden, the country has disintegrated, he said.

No one in the ballroom disagreed.

"This new administration is destroying America and everything it stands for," Eric Pardi told AFP.

"They're destroying our national independence, our border, our economy, and our law and order.

"That man loves this country and stands for it and that's what a president should be, somebody who stands and defends our Constitution".

The warm embrace of supporters like these were balm to Trump after a difficult week.