Donald Trump said Thursday, in his first campaign rally since his felony conviction, that he would reverse President Joe Biden's orders to crack down on illegal border crossings.
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The presumptive Republican nominee has also sought to raise campaign cash on an issue that has resonated with voters in opinion polls, threatening to impose tariffs on countries that do not stop immigration to the United States.
Asked by an audience member at an event in must-win Arizona what he would do to stop the flow of people, including migrants from China and the Middle East, entering the United States at the southern border, Trump said he would use economic stimulus measures.
“We have enormous economic power and we have a very tough system of tariffs if China or any other country misbehaves,” he said.
“We're going to be very tough and if countries don't comply we're going to impose heavy tariffs on them,” he added, without giving details about the size or type of tariffs that would be imposed.
Trump was in Phoenix for his first event since his 34-count conviction for falsifying business records to hide hush money paid to porn actresses.
A sympathetic audience in this southwestern border state was given the opportunity to ask the former president questions after the lengthy speech.
Some were about the cost of living, but most focused on immigration, which polls say is a top concern for voters ahead of the Nov. 5 election.
Seeking to neutralize what is widely seen as an insufficient effort on his part, President Biden issued an executive order this week banning asylum applications if the number of migrants who cross into the U.S. illegally exceeds 2,500 in a single day.
The order also makes it easier to deport people to Mexico.
The restrictions will remain in place until the number of illegal border crossings falls below 1,500 per day.
Biden has come under fire from all sides for his policy reversal, using the same law that President Donald Trump used to ban immigration from Muslim countries.
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Republicans, on the other hand, strongly criticized the budget as too small.
Trump said Thursday he would rescind the order if he wins the election.
“On Day One of my Administration, I'm going to repeal Crooked Joe's ridiculous executive order,” Trump told a cheering crowd, blasting the order without evidence as “pro-invasion, pro-child trafficking, pro-drug trafficking.”
“And I intend to repeal all of the Biden Administration's open border policies.”
Biden won Arizona by just 10,000 votes in 2020, and the state is expected to be crucial to either man's chances of winning the White House for the next four years.
Trump is expected to hold a rally in the battleground state of Nevada on Sunday.
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(AFP)
