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Trump's rally speech in Tampa contained many elements familiar
to his political events. Several hecklers were ejected and the
crowd at the state fairgrounds was big and loud. Trump attacked
public opinion polls, except one that said he was popular among
Republicans.
The president, in Florida to campaign for Republican Governor
Rick Scott's bid for a U.S. Senate seat and U.S. Representative
Ron DeSantis' campaign for governor, said he could tame his
raucous presidential style if he wanted.
“I can be more presidential than any president in history except
for maybe Abe Lincoln with the big hat,” Trump said. “I admit
it, Abe Lincoln is tough.”
The president spent considerable time talking about his trade
policies, including tit-for-tat tariffs with China that he said
would eventually pay dividends for the United States.
The tariffs are causing unease among Republican lawmakers facing
tough re-election battles in November, and Trump's focus on them
suggested he was concerned about their potential political
impact.
China and other top U.S. trade partners zeroed in on American
farmers with retaliatory tariffs after the administration
imposed duties on Chinese goods as well as steel and aluminum
from the European Union, Canada and Mexico.
"China and others have targeted our farmers. Not good. Not nice.
And you know what our farmers are saying? 'It’s OK. We can take
it,'" Trump said.
The Trump administration announced a $12 billion farm aid
package last week, prompting some farmers and farm-state
lawmakers, including Trump’s fellow Republicans, to criticize
the move, saying they would rather trade with no tariffs than
receive government help.
"I want to thank our farmers," Trump said. "Our farmers are true
patriots."
Trump also defended the denuclearization deal he signed with
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in June in Singapore after
reports surfaced that North Korea was proceeding with its
missile program.
The Singapore summit was long on positive imagery but short on
specific benchmarks for North Korea giving up its nuclear
weapons.
Trump said the fact that North Korea was starting to return the
remains of American dead from the 1950s Korean War and that
there had been no nuclear or missile tests were offshoots of the
summit."I think it's going to work out very well," he said. "No
tests, no rockets flying. But we'll see what happens."
(Reporting by Steve Holland; Editing by Peter Cooney)
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