Trump touts U.S. economy, oil prices during midterm speech in Pennsylvania

MACUNGIE, Pa. — Speaking in a key Pennsylvania district Tuesday, President Donald Trump sought to reassure voters that costs are falling and they are better off than they were two years ago.

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After the war with Iran helped drive up energy prices, and with them the cost of household goods and groceries, Trump touted the drop in the price of oil to a recent low as markets soared. US crude oil closed at $73.21 on Tuesday, just $6.19 higher than the day before the US attack on Iran.

“Oil is going to go down. And with oil, everything else,” Trump said.

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US-Iranian negotiations appear to be progressing

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Trump delivered his speech, billed as one focused on American workers and the cost of living, at a massive Mack Trucks manufacturing plant here in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley, an area critical to Republican hopes of maintaining control of Congress in November’s midterm elections.

Jobs are growing in the Lehigh Valley, Trump told the crowd, with more auto plants being built. Trump said the administration created 32,000 new jobs in Pennsylvania, thanks to pharmaceutical, medical device and other companies building manufacturing facilities in the region. He cited his tax cuts and efforts to lower prescription drug prices, saying each “should single-handedly win us the midterm elections.”

Trump touted what he said were the economic benefits of the peace deal his administration is working to consolidate with Tehran. And he defended his efforts abroad, saying he had managed to stand up to “trade cheats” with his tariffs intended to protect American jobs.

“And now I stand up again because Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said. “I put 50% tariffs on foreign copper, aluminum and steel, so they couldn’t come and steal your job, and sometimes even tariffs over 100%. They weren’t going to come from foreign countries and steal your jobs.”

The president has also made repeated proposals for passage of the SAVE America Act, a sweeping voter ID bill and the top legislative priority of his second term, including addressing California’s recent election before calling for the law’s passage. It is currently blocked in the Senate.

Trump urged voters to support Rep. Ryan Mackenzie of Pennsylvania, who represents Macungie and is one of four Pennsylvania Republicans that Democrats are targeting to win the House majority this fall. The president’s supporters lined up for more than a kilometer in the pouring rain.

“They want to hear that the economy is going to grow again,” said John McLaughlin, the president’s investigator. “There are a lot of working-class and middle-class voters who feel like they’ve been exploited for decades. It’s about economic growth.”

“They might feel better,” he added. “But the president is not on the ballot in November and Republicans must support his agenda.”

“If you can grow the economy, small businesses will grow, jobs will stay in America and they will benefit,” McLaughlin said. “But they want to be able to see it. … If you don’t have a growing economy, it’s going to be very difficult to maintain your majorities.”

That will likely take place on Wednesday, when Trump visits the Capitol to address Senate Republicans at their weekly luncheon. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said he has a list of things Senate Republicans would like to accomplish with Trump before November that “will allow us to present an argument to the American people that will persuade them that they want to maintain the majority here in Congress.”

The SAVE America Act is also expected to pass, which Republicans have so far failed to pass amid Democratic opposition and despite Trump’s repeated calls to do so.

Before Trump’s remarks, attendees said they wanted to hear more about his efforts to lower prices. Many have largely supported his efforts in office, saying they are willing to give the president more time, including on the war in Iran, as the administration works to broker a ceasefire between Washington and Tehran.

Jason Banonis, a lawyer who attended the speech, said he would not mind if the United States were to strike Iran again. “I trust the president,” Banonis said, adding that he believed the cost of goods would come down once the conflict was resolved.

But Banonis, who has two sons ages 18 and 20, said that even as people feel better about the economy, he hopes the president will send a message to Americans about how he plans to lower prices further.

As for Republicans in the midterms, he said, “Trump is not on the ballot — that’s a concern.” »

The war in Iran, now in its fourth month, further complicates the situation, with negotiations underway this week in Switzerland to keep a vital waterway open and end the conflict. The war has driven up gas prices and caused economic uncertainty heading into summer. And with a fragile truce underway, the president has threatened to restart combat operations if he does not see the progress he hopes for in the negotiations, saying Tuesday that if they are not reasonable, “we will have to finish the job.”

It would take “about maybe less than a week,” the president added.

Ben Coombs, 30, a production team leader at Mack Trucks, said before the speech that he hoped to hear Trump outline plans to prevent manufacturers from moving operations to Mexico. He said the impact on the economy was being felt locally and blamed the rising price of diesel and falling consumer confidence, which he said hurt the company’s truck orders.

Asked about the president’s efforts to end the war in Iran, he replied: “The war was not necessary.”

When asked what he believes the risks are for Republicans heading into the midterm elections, Coombs spoke of his disappointment with Republicans’ handling of the Epstein files, documents related to investigations into the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. “The Epstein files dashed my hopes,” he said, adding that he “would have liked to see people held accountable.”

Jim Vinup, another attendee, said he wants to see progress on the SAVE Act. “The Senate and the House need to come together and do this,” Vinup said. “I really want this bill to pass.”

He expressed satisfaction with Trump’s handling of the Iran war and urged his critics to cut him some slack after just 18 months in office, saying “it’s only a matter of time” before gas prices fall again.

As for Iran, rally attendee Rhonda Butz said, “They can’t have the bomb.”

McLaughlin said the president’s record in recent primary elections shows his support base is still strong, including in Kentucky, where a Trump-backed candidate unseated Rep. Thomas Massie — the leading Republican on legislation to release the Epstein files, who frequently broke with Trump — after 14 years in office.

The challenge is ensuring that Trump voters will participate in November, in an election where he will not be on the ballot, and that independent voters will remain motivated. “They’re looking at the next election and wondering, ‘What are you going to do to make my life better?’ “,” McLaughlin said.

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