💥 Trump’s ‘Affordability’ Speech Veers Off Script in Pennsylvania Rally (Video)

MOUNT POCONO, Pa. — President Donald Trump road-tested a fresh campaign message of tackling American affordability woes at a rally in Mount Pocono, Pennsylvania, on Tuesday. Still, a series of wide-ranging tirades repeatedly overshadowed the intended focus. Speaking for over 90 minutes in a conference center ballroom, the president touted his economic record while simultaneously denying that the public has any real reason for concern about the cost of living.

The core of the President’s address was a defense of his economic policies, which he claims are already bringing down prices and will make America affordable again. He frequently pointed to the stock market’s performance as evidence of a “historic boom,” an assessment contradicted by polling that consistently shows public anxiety over high costs. Trump insisted that he is the one fixing the problem, frequently diverting to blame his predecessor for what he labeled the “worst inflation in history.” He claimed, “prices are coming down,” a statement that runs counter to recent data showing inflation continues to rise above the Federal Reserve’s target.

The planned economic focus quickly devolved as the President meandered into familiar territory, including repeated, lengthy attacks on global affairs and immigration. He dedicated a significant portion of his speech to lambasting Europe, which he described as “weak” and “decaying,” claiming the continent was “destroying itself” through immigration policies. His remarks on European cities echoed far-right tropes, including specifically targeting London’s first Muslim mayor, whom he called “a horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor.”

Closer to home, the President reiterated his intention to restructure American healthcare, particularly as enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies are set to expire. He voiced support for a Senate Republican proposal that would deposit payments into health savings accounts instead of extending the subsidies, claiming the ACA’s primary purpose was to enrich “the big, fat, rich insurance companies.”

The most striking diversion, however, came in a separate conversation with a reporter on Tuesday, where the President displayed open contempt for the very concerns he was purporting to address. When Politico’s Dasha Burns noted that Americans were worried about high prices this holiday season, President Trump dismissed the concern outright, telling her, “Don’t be dramatic.” When pressed on the impending rise in healthcare premiums due to the subsidy expiration, he interrupted to accuse the reporter of overreacting. This exchange, which he later referenced obliquely in his rally, underscored the administration’s struggle to align its rhetoric with the daily economic reality felt by many Americans.

The rally itself, held in a Monroe County that flipped to Trump in the last election, was a test of the administration’s ability to sell its “affordability” message to a skeptical public. Despite the President’s claims of a booming economy, one attendee, retired maintenance mechanic Lou Heddy, stated that his grocery bills had risen recently and expressed skepticism about the President’s ability to bring costs down: “Once the prices get up for food, they don’t ever come back down. That’s just the way I feel. I don’t know how the hell he would do it.” The challenge for the administration remains: convincing an anxious electorate that the economy is enjoying a historic boom while simultaneously acknowledging and fixing the high costs of essential goods and services.

Sources and Links

• Trump says he’s fixing affordability problems. He’ll test out that message at a rally AP News
• Trump Tells a Reporter ‘Don’t Be Dramatic’ When She Says Americans Are Concerned About High Prices This Holiday Season  People.com
• Trump addresses affordability crisis and attacks immigrants in meandering, bigotry-filled speech – follow live The Guardian
• Trump struggles to persuade Americans to ignore affordability issues The Washington Post