If anyone thought that President Donald Trump was going to make the sort of uplifting and unifying speech that the media has been urging he make during his Phoenix, Arizona rally, they were soon disabused of the notion. Trump laid into his favorite targets, especially the media, with great gusto. He also boasted of his accomplishments and hinted of some controversial actions to come.
Trump is still angry about Charlottesville
Trump spent a considerable amount of time rehashing the controversy over the riot in Charlottesville, where a group of Neo Nazis, Klansmen, and white supremacists brawled with Antifa radicals and a young woman was murdered. The president had been excoriated by many in the media for his remarks in the wake of that tragedy. Trump maintained that he was mistreated, repeated some of his comments word for word. His point was that the media was being deliberately dishonest about him. The crowd ate it up. The media analysis was decidedly outraged.
President did not mention Arizona’s senators by name
Two of Trump’s least favorite senators, John McCain and Jeff Flake, hail from Arizona. McCain was the deciding vote that sunk the skinny repeal and replace. Flake, in the president’s view, is weak on illegal immigration. Noting that his advisors begged him not to mention any names, Trump refused to do so. However, it was clear to whom he was referring to.
The Wall, NAFTA, and Joe Arpaio
The president touched on a number of issues as well. He touted the building of the southern border wall, a project dear to his heart. He attacked the opponents of the project and declared that he was willing to force a government shutdown if necessary to get the thing built.
He also suggested that he was prepared to withdraw from NAFTA is his efforts to renegotiate the treaty proves fruitless. He also asked the crowd what they thought of Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who has been convicted of contempt of a federal judge. He did not announce that he was pardoning Arpaio at the rally because he didn’t want to do anything “controversial.” However, he also suggested that Arpaio has nothing to worry about.
A divider, not a uniter
Most American presidents give lip services to trying to unite the United States, especially those who are the most divisive. Trump is not enough of a hypocrite to pretend to do that. In his world-view, there are his supporters, millions of ordinary, working Americans, and there are his enemies, the dishonest media, and the corrupt politicians who oppose him and disrespect his voters. He is not afraid to express this sentiment, something that drives his enemies crazy.