Trump Downplays Economy�s Significance at Economic-Focused Rally

Bloomberg) -- Republican nominee Donald Trump cast doubt on the economy as
the most important election issue, one in which he has a significant voter
trust advantage over his rival, Kamala Harris, who is planning to make a
speech about consumer prices later this week.

�Now this is a little bit of a different day, because we�re talking about a
thing called the economy. They wanted to do a speech on the economy,� Trump
said at a rally in Asheville, North Carolina, on Wednesday, in an apparent
reference to his campaign aides.

'They say it�s the most important subject, I�m not sure it is, but they say
it�s the most important subject. Inflation is the most important but that�s
part of the economy,� Trump said, before pivoting to talk about efforts
Harris� running mate Tim Walz undertook as Minnesota�s governor to make
tampons available for public school students.

The Trump campaign�s mixed attempts to focus on the economy come as voters
have repeatedly and consistently told pollsters that it is the top issue in
determining who they�ll vote for. It�s also a winning issue for the former
president: Trump leads Harris by an eight-percentage-point margin on whom
voters trust more on the economy, according to a Bloomberg News/Morning
Consult poll of seven swing states.

Voters in the so-called Blue Wall states of Michigan, Wisconsin and
Pennsylvania are even more likely to align with Trump (53%) rather than
Harris (44%) on the economy, according to a New York Times/Siena College
poll, though some nationwide polls show Harris closing in on Trump�s lead
on the issue.

Trump on Wednesday evening touched many familiar themes, including his
intent to extend tax cuts on households and small businesses, exempt tips
and Social Security payments from taxes and bolster domestic oil and gas
production.

He pledged to cut energy costs in half in the first 12 to 18 months of a
new term by eliminating regulation and approving more domestic energy
production, which has reached record highs under President Joe Biden.

Trump then suggested that might be overly ambitious, adding �and if it
doesn�t work out, you�ll say, �Oh, well�.�

He also pledged to not alter the Affordable Care Act, a law Republicans
sought to repeal during his first White House term. Republicans ultimately
abandoned the effort after failing to agree on a proposal to replace the
health care framework. Trump said he would only resume those efforts if the
party could come up with a �better� alternative.

Trump called a key ally, Scott Bessent, the founder of Key Square Group LP
who is among those under discussion for a cabinet role in a second Trump
term, onto the stage in Asheville, introducing him as �one of the most
brilliant men on Wall Street.� Bessent is a major campaign donor who has
praised Trump�s policies for boosting stock market performance.
Economic Emphasis

Trump�s rally � his first appearance in a swing state in nearly two weeks �
comes as his campaign is seeking to bat down Harris�s surge in the polls
since she replaced Biden at the top of the ticket last month. Her momentum
has tightened the race in several swing states, including North Carolina,
where Trump once had a wide lead over Biden.

Harris will also pay a visit this week to North Carolina, which Trump
clinched in 2020 and is a must-win for him this year. In Raleigh on Friday,
the vice president will discuss her plan to lower prices. She is seeking to
override poor voter perceptions of Biden�s handling of the economy, with
persistent inflation overshadowing efforts to tout investments in domestic
manufacturing and infrastructure.

North Carolina has a good economy that somewhat lags the explosive growth
of its neighbor, South Carolina. The state added about 80,000 jobs in the
year ended June, a 1.6% growth rate that ranked it 17th among the states.
Likewise, its real gross domestic product rose 2.3% from the fourth quarter
of last year to the first quarter of this one, ranking 18th nationally.

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