Trump pushes agenda while in Indiana
EVANSVILLE, Ind. — Casting the midterms as a referendum on his agenda, President Donald Trump urged Indiana Republicans on Thursday to unseat Sen. Joe Donnelly, saying the vulnerable Democrat is “not going to vote for us on anything.”
Trump, who is kicking up his campaign travel as the midterm elections near, appeared in Evansville to boost support for wealthy Republican businessman Mike Braun, who will face off against Donnelly in November in what is viewed as one of the nation’s most competitive Senate races.
Before a wildly enthusiastic crowd, Trump called Braun a “special guy” and said he would “be a truly great senator.” Braun took the stage and pledged to be a “true ally” to Trump, “not somebody that says something when you’re in Indiana and does something differently when you’re in D.C.”
Trump’s speech largely focused on his favored talking points. He pushed his agenda, arguing that Democrats in power would halt his efforts to cut taxes and roll back regulation and would block his longpromised border wall. To deafening applause he argued that “Republicans want strong borders” and said “Democrats want to abolish ICE,” the government agency tasked with enforcing the nation’s immigration laws.
Trump also promoted his record, again calling the economy the best in the “history of our country” and boasting about “putting tariffs on foreign producers who cheat our workers and cheat our companies.” The economy and jobs are nowhere close to historic bests based on several measures. And Trump’s decision to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports would help many domestic steel and aluminum mills while likely increasing prices for the factories that rely on those metals.
Trump also again threatened to intervene in the Justice Department if it fails to take the actions he’s demanding, saying the leaders of the DOJ and FBI “have to start doing their job and doing it right” because “people are angry.”
If they don’t do their job, he said, he “will get involved and I’ll get in there if I have to.”