Former President Donald Trump used a rally in Georgia Wednesday night to tout the Peach State’s record early voting turnout and its potential impact on the battleground state.
President Trump emphasized the importance of voter turnout in close elections. He also praised the millions of Georgia voters who have already cast their votes.
He also spoke about his economic plans and vision for revitalizing cities like Detroit. He criticized the Biden administration and his opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, on immigration issues. and repeated claims of political persecution.
He said nothing on stage about the latest allegations against his longest-serving chief of staff.
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John Kelly, who worked in President Trump’s White House from 2017 to 2019, said in an interview with the New York Times that he believes Trump has “fascist” traits and praised Adolf Hitler. He said he was making a similar comment.
The former president visited Georgia as Kelly’s claims dominated headlines. He attended a “Georgia for Trump” event Wednesday night in Duluth, Georgia, northeast of Atlanta.
President Trump praises Georgia’s early voting numbers
Georgia is one of seven swing states that could decide the 2024 presidential election. According to various polls, neither Mr. Trump nor Ms. Harris has a clear advantage in the state. He congratulated the state on voting millions early.
“Early voting is like nothing people have ever seen before,” President Trump said from the stage.
Early voting in the state began on October 15, with a record 300,000 Georgians voting. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensberger said at a press conference Wednesday that by the time Trump took the stage a week later, nearly 2 million people had voted early.
Trump’s recent comments represent a change from the former president, who has previously claimed without evidence that early voting was connected to election fraud. Republicans, including the Trump campaign, are making a concerted effort to encourage voters to vote early in 2024.
Still, Trump added a word of caution, telling the crowd in Duluth, Georgia, to “be a little careful and make sure your vote is counted.”
Biden accused of ‘locking up’ remarks
In his speech, President Trump pounced on recent comments he said were evidence that President Joe Biden is being politically persecuted.
“We have to lock him up,” Biden told campaign officials about Trump during a stop at New Hampshire Democratic Party headquarters on Tuesday.
President Trump tweeted the following day: “As I said, these cases are being handled by the Department of Justice and the FBI. Believe it or not, Biden is behind all of this. We proved that.” ”
Trump was convicted by a New York jury in May of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records and other charges related to his handling of classified documents after leaving the White House and efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. He was also found guilty in three cases. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Mr. Biden and Democrats have been careful to avoid commenting on Mr. Trump’s legal issues. The president quickly responded to his initial remarks Tuesday by saying, “Put him in jail politically. Lock him out. That’s what we have to do.”
Trump talks about Detroit’s ‘comeback’
President Trump highlighted the city of Detroit as he touted his economic plan. It’s a city he recently bashed during his campaign in Detroit.
“Look at Detroit. Detroit, I’ve been hearing for 40 years that Detroit is coming back. It’s never coming back. It’s going to be right back,” he said under the Trump administration.
Earlier this month, President Trump spoke at length in a speech at the Detroit Economic Club about the threat he believes a Harris administration poses to the United States.
“The whole country is going to be like, ‘Do you want to know the truth?’ It’s going to be like Detroit,” Trump said at the time. “If she were president, our entire country would be like Detroit. You’d be in a mess.”
Local and state leaders criticized President Trump’s comments, insisting that Michigan’s largest city is experiencing a boom.
On Wednesday, President Trump said he intends to make Michigan “more prosperous than anyone else.”
“I hate to say it, but I think I’m even richer than you,” he told the Georgia crowd.
Biden’s immigration issue slams Laken Riley’s death
Mr. Trump also criticized Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris’ record on immigration, which is usually a win-win for Republicans.
The former president specifically mentioned the death of Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student who died while jogging on the University of Georgia campus in February. President Trump blamed the Biden administration’s border policies for her death.
Jose Antonio Ibarra, 26, a Venezuelan immigrant who entered the United States illegally in 2022, was indicted in May and charged with 10 crimes, including malicious murder and aggravated assault.
Because of Ybarra’s immigration status, Riley’s death sparked a debate over border security. Her father, Jason Riley, criticized the politicization of his daughter’s death.
Also, in Wednesday’s pitch to voters on immigration, President Trump said the Biden administration would allow people with “swastikas on their foreheads, swastikas across their cheeks, and many other symbols all over their faces” to cross the border. He claimed that Meanwhile, a former chief of staff’s claim that President Trump spoke positively about Hitler cast a shadow over the election.
Trump shuts down on John Kerry
President Trump did not say anything about Kelly’s recent remarks on stage in Duluth.
He also did not address the allegations at the Believers and Voters Faith Town Hall in Zebulon, Georgia, the same day.
The former president instead took to social media, writing in a post on Truth Social between events that Kelly “made up a story out of pure Trump Derangement Syndrome hatred!”
“John Kerry is a scumbag and a bad general. I stopped seeking his advice in the White House and told him to move on,” Trump wrote.
Contributor: Michael Collins, David Jackson
