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FULL SPEECH, Donald Trump, Mobile, AL (AUGUST 21, 2015)
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B. Steadman -
Donald Trump before a rousing audience in Mobile: 'We are going to make America better than it's ever been'
AL.com
John Sharp
8/21/2015
Excerpt:
GOP presidential hopeful Donald Trump, during a rousing 54-minute speech Friday in the north end zone at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, blasted U.S. leaders being weak international trade negotiators while telling supporters he's the guy who can "make America better than it's ever been."
A large and enthusiastic Mobile crowd roared its approval as the billionaire real estate developer and reality TV show star walked on stage to "Sweet Home Alabama" before firing into a speech that touched upon an array of his campaign talking points: Illegal immigration, job creation, weak U.S. politicians, health care and trade negotiations.
"Trade, we are going to fix it; health care, we are going to fix it; women's health issues, we are going to fix it," Trump said.
Praise for Sessions
Trump, who is leading polls for the GOP nomination for president in 2016, referenced Alabama only once during his speech when he linked U.S. Steel's plans to idle its Fairfield Works mill to poor international policy that allows China to be a world manufacturing leader.
Trump did, however, publicly credit U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Mobile, for providing him advice and called him a "great politician." Sessions, himself, received a loud ovation when he walked to the podium and welcomed Trump "to my hometown, Mobile, Alabama."
Sessions, last week, applauded Trump's immigration plan that calls for a wall to be built across the southern U.S. border paid for by Mexico and other measures to limit immigration. He wants to end "birthright citizenship," a legal immigration right for children born in the U.S.
"You have 300,000 babies a year that you have to take care of," Trump said. "You know, in the case of other countries including Mexico, they don't do that. It doesn't work that way. We're the only place that is stupid enough to do it."
'Greatest jobs president'
Few specifics about his proposals were discussed during the speech – and he opted not to hold a news conference before or after the rally – but Trump assured an adoring audience that he has a plan to create jobs by implementing a tariff on businesses exporting manufacturing jobs overseas.
"I am going to be the greatest jobs president that God ever created," Trump said.
Trump called overseas negotiators "killers" and said typical politicians are likely to be influenced by lobbyists and others when it comes to crafting deals with foreign leaders.
Trump held up his 2004 book, "The Art of the Deal" and warned people that "we are getting killed by everybody. We don't make good deals and everybody is killing us."
He added, "We will have unbelievable deals."
Criticism of Bush
Trump singled out a few politicians with criticism, including former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who is running second in most polls.
"Jeb Bush, who is totally in favor of Common Core and weak on immigration (and) wants to let people come in," Trump said, and referenced a controversy over the term "anchor baby" which refers to a child born to a noncitizen mother in a country which has birthright citizenship.
"Now he is using 'anchor baby,'" Trump said, referring to comments Bush made Thursday about not finding fault behind the phrase that some say is insensitive. "Now because I'm using it, he's using it."
Trump also singled out Caroline Kennedy, the U.S. Ambassador to Japan, as someone who has failed to make good deals with Japan.
"She'll do anything they want," he said.
Shots at the media
Trump, who has become a media darling this summer, took shots at political reporters who he said had a lower approval rating than Congress. He specifically took shots at NBC and Univision for their treatment of him over the handling of the Miss USA pageant and "The Apprentice."
"I am going to be the greatest jobs president that God ever created." - Donald Trump
NBC and Univision declined to continue with the pageant because of Trump's remarks about immigrants when he launched his presidential campaign in June.
"In the case of Univision, I sued them $500 million," he said. "I want that money."
Attendance estimate: 30,000
While there were visibly plenty of empty seats on both sides of the stadium's grand stands, one state official estimated a crowd between 25,000-30,000 people.
Projections were for 42,000 people to be inside Ladd-Peebles Stadium, but no exact crowd count was available. It's unclear whether the Mobile rally drew as many people as Democrat Bernie Sanders' one-night rally in Los Angeles attended by more than 27,000 people. So far, that is the record for a one-night rally during the 2016 presidential campaign.
Inside the stadium, the scene was reminiscent of a political carnival. People walked around with signs supporting a fantasy "Trump/Sessions" 2016 ticket. Other signs showed support for Trump's tendency to be politically incorrect.
There were long lines outside the stadium before the gates opened at 4 p.m. Five hundred Trump campaign signs provided by ABC Signs of Theodore were quickly gobbled up. The company also gave out 1,000 T-shirts.
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View the complete article, including image, at:
http://www.al.com/news/mobile/index....a_rousing.htmlB. Steadman
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