Trump Seeks Boost in Arizona Campaign by Focusing on Immigration

By Dana Cruz First Posted: Aug 19, 2020 02:48 AM EDT

President Donald Trump has put immigration at the forefront of his Arizona campaign speech on Tuesday.

Trump boasted his office's intense focus and achievements on the issue of immigration. With the Arizona campaign, the President hoped to carry the support from the key swing state for the November elections.

Trump also aimed at presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, reported The Hill. He called Biden's immigration plans the most "radical, extreme, reckless, dangerous and deadly" one ever put forward by a major-party candidate.

A big crowd welcomed Trump for his Yuma, Arizona campaign. The President flaunted his administration's achievements in rounding up migrants and putting more security measures at the border.

He said he kept his key promises like building a border wall and cutting tax prices. Trump rattled off statistics on border crossings and arrests.

Donald Trump Holds Campaign Event In Yuma, Arizona

(Photo : Photo by Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images)
President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally on August 18, 2020 in Yuma, Arizona.

The President also defended the intense focus on criminal activity and the crackdown on immigrants. He said the efforts improved safety in the United States and boosted the economy.

While he'd gone through it four years ago, Trump finds the coming election the most important one for him. In his speech, he said it is the "most consequential presidency."

There were hundreds of people who came to the Yuma event. He delivered his speech at Joe Foss Hangar, and it lasted for 45 minutes. The 104-degree heat caused some people to seek medical care.

There were about two dozen people who had health issues both inside and outside the hangar, the Arizona Republic reported. The Yuma Fire Department took four people to the hospital.

In his speech, Trump acknowledged the heat in jest: "You know it's 122 degrees in this place... This is like a test."

Many of those who came to the event wore masks, but only a few kept the recommended gap from others for social distancing, reported the CNN.

Trump Warned Against Democratic Agenda

Trump said the Democratic Party's plans to strip away gun rights and reopen the nation's borders are "radical and beyond socialism."

He called the Democratic tandem's plan, "a step-by-step recipe for abolishing America's borders."

For Trump, it could also displace many American workers and make some communities less safe.

He also pointed out that Biden was part of a "failed strategy" along the border where illegal crossings reached alarming levels.

Trump's focus on illegal immigration isn't new. Bloomberg even noted that his comments in the Arizona campaign speech were like the central theme of his 2016 campaign.

Trump's Campaign So Far

The national surveys and polls on voters from key states saw that Trump is trailing Biden by a small gap.

According to a recent Gallup poll, Trump sees a job approval rating of 42 percent. It was four percent higher than his rating in the previous months. Trump's poll numbers likely went up because of his return to having regular coronavirus news briefings.

In less than three months, voters will be casting their ballots to determine if Trump still gets another term in the White House. Even though his approval rating has been better than before, Biden is still in the lead.

One of the things that Gallup's poll respondents found lacking in Trump was his race relations. If Trump does want his poll numbers to go higher before November, he will need to work on this aspect of his office.