Trump reverts to rally mode with racist remarks and false claims about the economy

Donald Trump sought to regain trust on the economy at a rally-style event on Tuesday evening with a blitz of false claims about the economy and xenophobic attacks on immigrants and “shithole countries”.

- David Smith Washington

In the wake of Republican election defeats and criticism that he is out of touch with the US’s affordability crisis, Trump’s speech at the Mount Pocono casino in northeastern Pennsylvania was billed as an opportunity to reclaim the economic narrative.

But greeted by Lee Greenwood’s song God Bless the USA and a crowd chanting “USA! USA! USA!”, the president swiftly reverted to his freewheeling campaign mode, frequently diverting from his teleprompter over more than 90 minutes to hurl insults and call affordability a “hoax”.

“I have no higher priority than making America affordable again,” Trump said in a rare moment of message discipline below a blue sign that said “Lower prices, bigger paychecks”. He added: “That’s what we're going to do. They [Democrats] caused the high prices and we’re bringing them down.”

The president has often dismissed concerns about prices as a “hoax” and a “con job” to suggest that he bears no responsibility for inflation. In an interview with the Politico news site released on Tuesday, Trump was asked what grade he would give the economy. “A-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus,” he replied.