It was a speech that the White House billed as “an official stop” and not a “political campaign event,” but as it usually goes with Trump, he contradicted his own White House immediately.
Despite the president’s early morning tweet endorsing a GOP political candidate for Congress, the White House issued a statement denying once again that Trump’s Pennsylvania speech was a campaign stop.
‘While the President has made clear his support for Republican candidates throughout the country, including in Pennsylvania, the purpose of today’s visit is to promote the President’s successful agenda especially on taxes.’
The distinction matters. If the speech is a campaign stop for the GOP, the GOP is required to foot the bill. As a non-political event meant to advance the president’s agenda, the American taxpayer covers it.
‘Mr. Trump initially said he was traveling to Pennsylvania to campaign for Rick Saccone, a current member of Pennsylvania’s statehouse who is running in a special congressional election in Pennsylvania. That open seat was vacated by former Rep. Tim Murphy, a vocal opponent of abortion who resigned after Murphy reportedly asked a women he had an affair with to have an abortion.
‘But on Thursday morning, the White House issued a statement saying the president is visiting to talk up the benefits of tax reform, seeming to contradict the president’s own statement.’
Pres. Trump invokes Hillary Clinton's "deplorables" comment at Pennsylvania rally: "That was not a good phrase that she used. Oh, some things you'd like to have back." https://t.co/UYz3h0bfbI pic.twitter.com/BBB650rsYP
— ABC News (@ABC) January 18, 2018
Trump did brag and preen over his newly signed tax plan that went into effect all of 18 days ago, but the speech became more reminiscent of his 2016 campaign rallies with mentions of Hillary Clinton, Trump’s “landslide” win (that wasn’t even close to being a landslide), and the “deplorables” who love him.
Trump also told factory workers at Coraopolis, Pennsylvania that he was responsible for their employee bonuses and $2,200 annual tax savings due to his genius new tax plan while saving their jobs doing away with regulations. He never mentioned the impending layoffs of steelworkers, as well as layoffs at Kmart, Sears, Macy’s and Endo Pharmaceutical, all in Pennsylvania and all laying off Pennsylvania workers.
The president also bragged that he repealed that awful “cruel individual mandate” that required everyone to pay into the healthcare system, but didn’t mention that the savings wouldn’t mean much since middle-class families will no longer be able to write off student loan interest or find affordable healthcare plans once he’s finished gutting the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
https://twitter.com/whereisunruh/status/954087024222441472
He also gave the requisite history lesson that “nobody knows” but him. The Empire State Building, for instance, was built in only one year, “nobody knows that.” The Hoover Dam is another example, according to Trump, of what American ingenuity can do.
He never mentioned that the Hoover Dam was the result of entrepreneurship by Henry J. Kaiser, the son of immigrant parents, or that the Empire State Building was largely built by immigrants. In fact, he never mentioned the ingenuity and contributions of immigrants at all.
He just pushed his “America First” agenda without ever mentioning how America was built on the backs of immigrants. Oh, and he reminded everyone again that he won in November…in case anyone forgot.
See the full speech below:
Featured image screengrab via YouTube
