Donald Trump was forced to clarify remarks he made at a rally attended by Christians in Florida. The former President urged his audience to come out and vote in November and assured them they would never need to do so again. Left-leaning commentators immediately accused Mr. Trump of seeking to hold on to power after his four-year term and of letting the cat out of the bag by pledging there would be no further elections.
During a subsequent sit-down media interview, Trump attempted to clear up any confusion surrounding his comments. He explained that he told his Christian supporters, who he said are often reluctant to vote, just to do so once, and he would improve the country so much that they would not have to worry about it again. Trump clarified that he meant to say, “This time vote, I’ll straighten out the country, you won’t have to vote anymore, I won’t need your vote.”
During the same interview, Mr. Trump took aim at Democrat-voting Jews and said they should have “their head examined.” The former President has repeatedly called on Jews to vote for him as he claims to be a greater friend to Israel than either Joe Biden or Kamala Harris.
Back in April, Trump generated headlines – and some Jewish fury – when he stated that US Jews who vote Democrat do “not love Israel” and “should be spoken to.” He said Democrats had sided with Palestinians in the Middle East war, and Jews only voted for the party out of habit.
Meanwhile, Kamala Harris has jumped into the lead in swing state polling, which some analysts suggest reflects voter exasperation with Trump’s more controversial remarks. In Michigan, for example, Harris leads by 11 points, while she has a two-point lead in Arizona, Wisconsin, and Nevada. The two candidates are tied in Georgia, where Harris held her most recent rally attended by thousands. At the event, Harris raised raucous cheers when she challenged Trump to debate her as scheduled in September. “If you’ve got something to say, say it to my face,” she said.