Trump complains to Ohio GOP that Dems are ‘negative, nasty’
COLUMBUS, Ohio — President Donald Trump sought to unite Ohio’s fractious state Republican Party on Friday, bitterly complaining about “negative, nasty” Democrats and warning that the Democratic contender for governor would “destroy your state.”
Trump praised the slate of Republican candidates during a fundraising dinner in the nation’s premier battleground state but noticeably avoided mentioning Gov. John Kasich, one of his 2016 primary opponents and sharpest critics, who skipped the event.
A subdued Trump, who has been grappling with the defection of some longtime loyalists amid investigations into his 2016 campaign, skewered Democrat Richard Cordray “as a far-left candidate” who was “groomed by Pocahontas.” That was a reprise of his insult of Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a possible 2020 presidential challenger, over her Native American heritage.
“Cordray will destroy your state,” Trump said without going into specifics. Cordray, who led the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in Washington during the Obama administration, worked closely with Warren, who helped create the agency before she won a Senate seat.
Ohio is holding a number of high-stakes races for governor, Senate and several U.S. House seats that could factor into GOP control of Congress this fall — and linger into Trump’s next presidential campaign.
The president charged Democrats with being unable to govern, returning to his longstanding critique that the party has failed to help secure the nation’s Southern border and turned its back on American institutions. He cited calls by some Democrats to abolish the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, which Trump has repeatedly praised.
“You have left-wing haters and radicals trying to tear down our institutions, disrespect our great American flag, demean our law enforcement — think of that, our flag — our law enforcement, ICE,” Trump said. “Denigrate your history and disparage our great country, and they’re [going] so far left and they’re being dragged left.”