"He's definitely the biggest governor," Trump says of West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice, who is tall and heavy.
Trump says nobody could pass tax cuts for 40 years until he came up with the idea of calling them tax cuts instead of tax reform. He always writes the Bush tax cuts out of history, plus the big Reagan tax cut of 32 years ago.
"We had a trade deficit of almost $500 billion last year with China," Trump says of the $337 billion trade deficit last year with China.
Trump criticizes Manchin and other Democrats for opposing his tax cuts. He boasts that he's the first president in many years willing to get tough on China.
Trump says that a lot of people don't understand the concept of "intellectual property," but: "It doesn't matter if you understand it or not. You understand the concept of being taken advantage of."
Trump on NAFTA: "We'll have something, I think, fairly soon."
Trump says he's urged caution from his officials who want a quick NAFTA announcement next week, saying he told them: "Don't rush it. Take it nice and easy. There's no rush. We get it done right or we'll terminate."
Trump falsely claims that "nobody ever comes back" for their immigration court cases after their initial release at the border.
Trump says he was right to talk about immigrants and "rape," saying "they don't want to talk about that" (he doesn't specify who "they" are). He suggests lots of women on the caravan in the news are being raped.
Trump lies about the diversity visa lottery for the 13th time, again falsely saying that foreign countries are intentionally putting bad apples into the lottery. "They're not putting their goods ones."
Trump is now talking about how MS-13 uses knives instead of guns to inflict maximum pain on innocent young girls. "Their parents never see 'em again. They're cut up."
This event is "a roundable discussion on tax reform."
This event is "a roundable discussion on tax reform."
Trump boasts that ICE agents are grabbing people "by the neck" and "throwing" them into "the paddy wagon." He adds: "The people are clapping and screaming. Their town's been liberated...literally...a war...they're clapping."
Trump claims again that the perpetrator of the West Side Highway terror attack brought in 22 people through "chain migration." "They say 22 people. 22 people!"
Nobody at all says that other than him. Not even his aides. Experts say it's wildly implausible.
Nobody at all says that other than him. Not even his aides. Experts say it's wildly implausible.
! Trump repeats his wild lie about voter fraud, baselessly claiming that "millions" of people are committing crimes: "in many places, like California, the same person votes many times...they always likes to say that's a conspiracy theory. It's not a conspiracy theory."
Trump boasts about winning West Virginia, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Wisconsin. He claims that 20,000 to 25,000 people were unable to get in to his sold-out 2016 campaign rally in Charleston, West Virginia.
Trump holds up what were supposed to be his brief introductory remarks on tax reform. "That would've been a little boring. A little boring," he says.
West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice on Trump: "The thing I know about him that you may not: is he really cares. He genuinely in his heart really cares about West Virginia, about you, and about this country."
"He also is focusing on the opiate epidemic with a LASER BEAM," West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey says of Trump.
Trump says he has a friend who went into the hospital, got painkillers and came out a drug addict.
He has previously told this story without claiming it was about a friend. I for one am doubtful the friend exists.
He has previously told this story without claiming it was about a friend. I for one am doubtful the friend exists.
A woman on the panel cries as she thanks Trump for the tax cuts. "Thank you for listening to us. Thank you for fighting for us," she says, struggling to stay composed.
Trump says that there was a lot of anger at banks before, but now it's a lot different.
A man on the panel says he's a simple Christian working man who doesn't pay much attention to politics, but he's enthused about Trump's infrastructure plan as someone who works at a John Deere facility, and "our family was blessed a lot by the tax cuts."
Trump boasts about freeing up banks from regulation by (I think) getting rid of the former head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. "We did it in a very nasty fashion. You would have been very proud of us," he says.
Trump falsely says that car companies didn't build plants in the US "for decades" before his presidency.
Trump concludes by making things awkward for two of his panelists, asking the crowd to cheer for their preferred Republican candidate in the Senate primary, Patrick Morrisey or Evan Jenkins. (Blankenship isn't on the panel.) The end.
Summary of Trump's "tax reform" event:
- Endorsed his 2015 comment about immigrants bringing rape
- Repeated his lie about millions of Californians committing voter fraud
- Repeated his lie about the visa lottery
- Repeated lies about taxes, trade
- Said there's no rush on NAFTA
- Endorsed his 2015 comment about immigrants bringing rape
- Repeated his lie about millions of Californians committing voter fraud
- Repeated his lie about the visa lottery
- Repeated lies about taxes, trade
- Said there's no rush on NAFTA
