Shifting attention
Trump hits the road to rally support
Shifting attention from his troubled White House, President Donald Trump hit the road Friday for a campaignstyle rally, resurrecting the buoyant jobs promises that powered his election victory and pledging to “unleash the power of the American spirit.”
“We love our workers and we are going to protect our workers,” Trump declared at a Boeing plant where the company showed off its new 78710 Dreamliner aircraft. “We are going to fight for jobs. We are going to fight for our families,” he said in a reprise of the “America First” message from his campaign.
More of the same is expected today when he holds a big rally in central Florida, a change of scenery that marks an effort to galvanize a month- old White House that has been buffeted by crisis and paralyzed by dysfunction.
The new president toured a 787- 10 still under construction and, before leaving, climbed aboard a completed aircraft painted in contrasting shades of
blue that formed the backdrop for his remarks. Some 5,000 employees and others inside a hangar greeted him with chants of “USA, USA.”
The president, who owns an airplane of his own but now travels exclusively on government aircraft, praised the Boeing jetliner as “an amazing piece of art.” He noted it’s made of carbon fibre, seats 330 passengers, is 18 feet longer than the previous model and can fly for half a day before landing.
“The name says it all. Dreamliner, great name,” Trump said.
“Our country is all about making dreams come true.”
“As your president I’m going to do everything I can to unleash the power of the American spirit and to put our great people back to work,” he said. “This is our mantra: Buy American and hire American.”
Trump’s appearance in South Carolina followed a marathon news conference Thursday at which he forcefully defended his performance in the opening weeks of his presidency. He brushed aside the turmoil, infighting among senior staff and setbacks in the courts and in Congress, saying his administration was running like a “finetuned machine.”
He also denounced the “criminal” leaks that took down his top national security adviser and revived questions about his own ties to Russia.
Trump is still trying to stabilize his national security team. On Monday, he demanded the resignation of national security adviser Michael Flynn following revelations Flynn had misled Vice- President Mike Pence about Flynn’s contacts with Russia. Trump’s first choice to replace Flynn – Vice Admiral Robert Harward – turned down the offer.
Trump tweeted Friday that “General Keith Kellogg, who I have known for a long time, is very much in play for NSA – as are three others.” Kellogg, who is serving as the acting national security adviser, travelled to South Carolina with Trump aboard Air Force One.
Also along on the trip were Trump’s daughter Ivanka; her husband Jared Kushner, a senior adviser to Trump; White House chief of staff Reince Priebus and strategist Steve Bannon.