President Trump[1] campaigned in Tennessee Tuesday night for Republican Senate candidate Marsha Blackburn, blasting her Democratic opponent as a “tool” of congressional Democratic leaders and a supporter of Hillary Clinton’s presidential bid.
Speaking at a boisterous rally in Nashville, Mr. Trump[2] criticized Democrat Phil Bredesen, a former two-term governor, as “very liberal.”
“He’s an absolute, total tool of Chuck Schumer and the MS-13 lover, Nancy Pelosi,” Mr. Trump[3] said, referring to the Democratic leaders of the Senate and House. “They don’t want the wall, they want open borders. They’re more interested in taking care of criminals than taking care of you.”
The president also slammed Mr. Bredesen for making campaign donations to Mrs. Clinton in 2016.
“Phil Bredesen supported her and he supported her ideas,” Mr. Trump[4] said. “He opposed the border wall. We’ve already started doing it.”
In his first campaign-style appearance since revelations that the FBI had an informant in his 2016 campaign, Mr. Trump[5] made fun of the issue with the crowd.
“How do you like the fact they had people infiltrating our campaign? Can you imagine?” Mr. Trump[6] asked. “Is there anybody in this big, beautiful arena right now who’s infiltrating our campaign? Raise your hand. That would take some courage.”
Mrs. Blackburn and Mr. Bredesen are running for the seat held by retiring Republican Sen. Bob Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. She appeared on stage with the president and praised his leadership on nominating judges, cutting regulations, “standing up to China and North Korea,” and curbing illegal immigration.
“That is what you call getting the job done,” Mrs. Blackburn said....
The president referred to his foreign policy by saying “America is winning” again.“Most importantly, our country is respected again all over the world,” he said. “We’re not making apologies, we’re not making excuses. No more apologies.”He said national security “is a great issue” for Republicans in the mid-term elections.“We’re going to defend our borders, and we’re going to fight crime,” he said.Earlier, Trump[7] campaign spokeswoman Lara Trump[8], the president’s daughter-in-law, told the crowd that special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation is trying to invalidate the votes of Trump[9] supporters in 2016.“I get very upset when I hear all this nonsense about Russian collusion,” Lara Trump[10] said. “It makes me very, very angry, and it should make you all angry too. Because they’re trying to tell you that your vote didn’t count, folks. Let me tell you something, your vote counted then, it’s going to count in the mid-terms come November, and it sure as hell is counting in 2020 when we reelect Donald J. Trump.”