Trump expects to take the blame

At a rally in Clarksville, Tennessee on Saturday, President Trump said if Republicans lose the midterms, he expects to be blamed. He also said if they win, he will get no credit whatsoever.

“If we don't win the midterms, they're going to blame me. You know that. And if we do win them, I will get no credit whatsoever.”

Trump's approval rating lags

Only thirty-eight percent approve of Trump's performance in office, compared with fifty-nine percent who disapprove, according to an NBC News average of polls.

Trump promises five thousand dollars

Trump closed his hour-and-a-half-long speech by reminding voters that with their vote on November third, they will get five thousand dollars if Republicans win the midterms.

“with your vote on Nov. 3, you'll get $5,000.”

The cost of Trump's promise

The total price tag for Trump's five thousand dollar payment to adults is estimated at one point three trillion dollars.

Trump's campaign schedule

Tennessee was the seventh state Trump has visited since the start of October. He had planned to fly to Alabama to attend the Georgia-Alabama football game but canceled the trip with Hurricane Isaias bearing down.

Trump defends his popularity

Trump used part of the rally to debunk the idea that his popularity has dropped, calling it a false narrative. He played a CNN clip showing his support among MAGA supporters is nearly unanimous.

“I'm very popular, I really am.”

Why campaign in a safe state

Trump acknowledged that campaigning in Tennessee, a deep-red state where Republicans are expected to sweep House and Senate races, might seem like time wasted.He said he wanted to reward places that have treated him well.

“What the hell am I doing in Tennessee?”

Republicans defend the strategy

Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., said Trump's rallies rally the base, which is what you need in a midterm election. He said that is what you have to have.

“It rallies the base. And that's really what we've got to see in a midterm election.”

Trump recites his record

Much of Trump's address was a recitation of what he considers his chief accomplishments.He cited a rise in median household income in his first year in office and a drop in the nation's poverty rate.

Trump muses about renaming oceans

Never shy about rebranding American landmarks, Trump mused about renaming the Atlantic or Pacific oceans in ways that would ensure he is not forgotten, saying we should have an ocean and a great river.

“We call it, 'Trump Ocean.' Or, 'Ocean of the Americas,' something like that.”

Trump's electoral history in Tennessee

Trump won Tennessee in all three of his presidential campaigns. The rally took place in a northern Tennessee county that he won by eighteen percentage points in the two thousand twenty-four presidential race.