(Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump said he’d like to focus on policy — as his allies are urging him to do — but can’t when Barack and Michelle Obama are delivering scathing critiques of him on prime-time television.
“Did you see Barack Hussein Obama last night?” Trump said Wednesday at a rally in Asheboro, North Carolina. “He was taking shots at your president, and so was Michelle. You know they always say, ‘sir, please stick to policy. Don’t get personal.’ And yet they’re getting personal all night long.”
The Obamas headlined the Democratic National Convention Tuesday in Chicago, using their speeches to assail Trump. They mocked the Republican nominee over his obsession with crowd sizes, said his dislike for them is fueled by race and called him a danger to the nation.
Their remarks likely had their intended effect: baiting Trump into focusing his attention on insulting his Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris. Critics say Trump’s attacks on her have leaned on misogynistic and racist tropes that threaten to alienate voters.
“We’d rather keep it on policy, but sometimes it’s hard when you’re attacked from all ends,” Trump said. He’s repeatedly said he’s been asked by allies to tamp down the attacks, and instead focus on the economy, where polls show he’s more trusted than Harris.
Trump surveyed the crowd at the rally asking them if he should ignore his aides advice: “Two questions, should I get personal? Should I not get personal?”
The crowd erupted for the first option.
“My advisers are fired,” Trump quipped.
For more: See {ELEC GO} on the Bloomberg Terminal for US election news
Trump’s reliance on insults intensified after Harris’ became the Democratic nominee, following President Joe Biden’s departure from the race. That’s given Democrats a newly competitive electoral map, putting into play swing states, including North Carolina, the party had largely written off.
Polls have shown a tightening presidential race in North Carolina. Trump led Harris in the state 48%-46% in late July, according to a Bloomberg News/Morning Consult poll. In April, Trump led Biden by 10 percentage points in the state, according to the poll.
Name Game
Trump, who doles out nicknames for both allies and adversaries, has struggled to brand Harris. He’s tested out several names for her, including “Laughing Kamala,” which have failed to land. He said he’s decided to call her “Comrade Kamala,” emphasizing her economic policies to prevent price gouging on groceries and raise corporate taxes, which critics have said are too onerous on business.
“People say, ‘Sir, don’t do it,’” Trump said. “You know, all my names, they’ve all worked. They’ve all been very successful.”
The event was Trump’s first outdoor rally since he survived an assassination attempt last month at a fairground in Butler, Pennsylvania. A gunman’s bullet grazed Trump’s ear after the shooter was able to gain access to an unsecured rooftop with a sight-line to the former president.
Trump on Wednesday spoke from a bullet-proof glass enclosure, a new addition since the shooting. Large, outdoor rallies have been a feature of Trump’s campaigns since he first ran for president, starting in 2015.
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.