There’s more desperate unhingery in Individual-1’s latest speech, this time in Pennsylvania. It demonstrates how the wheels are coming off, but this may be his way of grieving for Jeff Epstein.
The swing states may get more of these wanderings off-script. It’s better that live airing of this has begun to stop. His repeated taunts using a racial stereotype against Democrats sure don’t help to counter his now more solid description as a racist.
Date: August 13, 2019 at 3:15:37 PM EDT
Subject: Out-of-town pool report 5: speech highlights
In a 67-minute speech that at times resembled a campaign rally, the president meandered through several topics—many having little to do with energy. He talked about trade, immigration, trucks, emoluments, his 2016 victory, union leaders, his poll numbers, the media, steel, China, the amount of money he believes he’s losing as president, the Green New Deal, windmills, the WTO “screwing us”, President Obama’s book deal, Hillary Clinton’s comments on coal workers, pipelines and New York, Iran, veterans choice and more.
While this was listed as an official event, the president regularly drifted into explicit politicking—including asking the thousands gathered to support him in the next election and lobby union leadership to back him. He also mentioned his political mottos “Make America Great Again” and “Keep America Great” and criticized his Democratic rivals using nicknames like “Sleepy Joe”
Pool was asked to pack up to leave around 3:04pm, shortly before the speech ended
Here are some running highlights (please check against the transcript):
Trump began by saying he loves Pennsylvania and that he loves unions – and he praised himself for the economic numbers in Pennsylvania.
“This would’ve never happened without me” and without us, he said.
He reflected on his 2016 victory in Pennsylvania and erroneously said that he won Beaver County, Pa. by 28 points in 2016. According to local election officials, he beat Hillary Clinton by 18.5 points in Beaver County, (57.03 to 38.52)
He said he wanted union members to tell their leaders “I hope you’re going to support Trump.”
“And if they don’t, vote them the hell out of office,” he said.
...
“Can you imagine if I had a fair press?”... Could you imagine if these people treated me fairly? He indicated that with “fair” coverage, he wouldn’t even have to campaign for re-election and that he would be automatically re-elected.
“You want to really drive them crazy, go to hashtag-third-term” or “hashtag-fourth-term.”
“These people have gone stone cold crazy.”
He also talked about steel. “Steel was dead.” But then we put on tariffs.
“And now, your business is thriving… The steel companies are thriving again.”
“In recent decades the loyalty of Pennsylvania workers was repaid only with betrayal” as companies moved abroad.
The political class in Washington gutted your factories with bad trade deals, he said.
He castigated the World Trade Organization, saying it allowed China to go up like a rocket, while the US suffered. He claimed that the US has been winning more cases at the WTO since he was elected.
“We will leave if we have to”
“They have been screwing us for years” and “they know that it’s not going to happen any longer.”
“I’d like to use a different word but there’s no word that’s quite as descriptive.”
He lamented about how many investigations and lawsuits he has faced as president, including on emoluments.
“Nobody looks at Obama getting $60 million for a book”
“But with me, it’s everything—emoluments.”
Last month, I just won, two cases on emoluments.
“It’s probably costing me from $3 to $5 billion for the privilege of being…”
“This thing is costing me a fortune”
“Think of it, we protect the border of South Korea, but we don’ t protect our own.”
“The wall is being built—we won that case two weeks ago.”
“I was in West Virginia when Hillary made that terrible statement” about wanting to do away with coal. There were some boos and a couple shouts of “lock her up!” as the president invoked the name of his 2016 rival.
“A lot of fake news” he said, referring to the press.
“That’s a lot of people back there for like an 11 o’clock speech,” he said at 2:40pm, gesturing toward the cameras in the back of the room.
He talked about his 2016 win and Republican victories in the Senate in 2018, adding that he wasn’t on the ballot in 2018. “They don’t say we won the Senate”
“In 2020, we’re running so you better get out there and make sure.”
“Our country wasn’t doing well with Biden and Obama, he said.”
“I’m paying normalized interest rate” and it should be lower
“The head of the Fed, he’s making a big mistake.”
“That was another beauty that I chose.”
“How about moving Shell to the United States? Well, we’re ready if you are.”
He announced that Shell was joining the Pledge to America’s Workers.
He said the “Green New Deal” would put everyone out of work, but he added that he didn’t want to hit the Green New Deal too hard, because he wants Democrats to run on it.
“I did it very early with Pocahontas. I probably should’ve waited. She’s staging a comeback on Sleepy Joe.”
“What a group. Pocahontas and Sleepy Joe. I don’t think they give a damn about Western Pennsylvania.”
“All New York likes to do is sue me,” he said after complaining of New York’s pipelines