At a campaign rally in Las Vegas on Sunday, Donald Trump made the proposal to eliminate taxes on tips in an effort to win over voters in a key swing state with a large service industry workforce.
The plan, which was presented at the first campaign event of the presumed GOP nominee following his historic conviction in his New York hush money trial last month, was promptly denounced as “wild campaign promises from a convicted felon” by the influential Culinary Union of the state.
The former president has been on the road nonstop, stopping at high-dollar fundraisers in California and an Arizona campaign town hall before making his way to Las Vegas. He spent Saturday night at a Las Vegas event put on by his old friend and ally, construction equipment magnate Don Ahern.
Chris LaCivita, who is also working on Trump’s campaign, announced on Sunday that the four events that Trump visited in Nevada and California over the past few days brought in $27.5 million for the campaign and the Republican National Committee.
At the end of a seven-week criminal trial that resulted in his conviction on 34 felony counts related to a hush money scheme to pay off a porn star ahead of the 2016 election, Trump’s journey out west comes at a crucial point in his campaign as he attempts to change the narrative to his general election message.
While in Sin City, Trump also announced the formation of a new alliance called “Latino Americans for Trump” in an effort to reach out to Hispanic voters more effectively in the run-up to the November election. There was deliberate planning to roll out the new scheme in Nevada.
Even while Hispanics have historically voted Democratic, recent polls show that they are leaning more toward Trump. With a large Latino electorate in Nevada, Trump might win the crucial battleground state and maybe the presidency if he can win over some of these people. Joe Biden narrowly won Nevada by two points in 2020, continuing a streak of four consecutive years of Democratic support for the presidential contender.
According to a Trump associate who spoke to AWN before the rally, “Some of us believe that we might be better positioned in Nevada [this cycle] than we are even in Georgia.”
The COVID-19 epidemic was cited by Trump campaign sources as the main cause for their optimism. The pandemic had a disproportionate impact on Nevada because of the state’s reliance on the hospitality and tourist industries.
One top advisor said in the lead-up to the event that additional efforts are afoot to collaborate with the state’s Culinary Workers Union. This group has a long history of tight ties to Democrats, having participated in a huge voter turnout drive orchestrated by the late Nevada senator Harry Reid. Due to their votes to repeal cleaning regulations imposed on the casino business during the COVID-19 pandemic, the union unendorsed multiple Democratic state lawmakers last month.
“When I get to office, we are going to not charge taxes on tips,” Trump announced during his rally. “We’re going to implement that immediately, as soon as we take office, because it has been a contentious issue for an extremely long time, and you provide excellent service—you look after people.”
On Sunday, Local 226 of the Culinary Workers Union opposed Trump’s pledge, which would necessitate the consent of Congress. Secretary-Treasurer Ted Pappageorge expressed his admiration for the Culinary Union’s long history of fighting for the rights of tipped workers and against unfair taxation. “Tip earners need relief, no doubt about it. However, Nevada workers are intelligent enough to distinguish between genuine solutions and outrageous campaign promises made by a convicted felon.”
At a pivotal phase
At a town hall meeting hosted by the Turning Point PAC on June 6th at Dream City Church in Phoenix, former president Donald Trump meets fans.
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Just like he did at last week’s town hall in Phoenix, which was hosted by the conservative group Turning Point Action, Trump blasted his conviction and praised the financial boost it has given to his campaign on Sunday.
Trump has been quite clear in a string of interviews given over the last week that he intends to pursue revenge against his political opponents upon becoming president.
“It takes time to get even. Trump made the statement during an interview with Dr. Phil, a psychologist named Phil McGraw. “And vengeance is sometimes justifiable. The truth is, Phil, I must tell you. On occasion, it is possible.
On Sunday, Trump addressed immigration, which his team sees as a major weakness for Biden in the upcoming November election, in addition to referring to the inmates responsible for the January 6, 2021, Capitol break-in as “warriors” and maintaining the false claim that the rioters were invited inside by the police.
Last week, Biden made an executive announcement that grants him the power to close the US-Mexico border to asylum seekers who cross unlawfully above a certain threshold each day. This could be an effort to remedy that vulnerability. In his Phoenix speech, Trump blasted Biden over the decision on many occasions, describing it as “bullsh*t” and pledging to undo the new asylum restrictions if he were to be reelected.
The role of the Senate
With Democratic incumbent Jacky Rosen running for reelection, Nevada is hosting not just a highly anticipated presidential race but also one of the most closely contested Senate races in the nation.
The retired Army captain Sam Brown, who was badly burnt by an Afghan roadside bomb, has been putting pressure on Trump to support him in the run-up to Tuesday’s GOP primary. At Sunday’s event, he gave Brown a brief praise, but it wasn’t until hours later, in a post on Truth Social, that he endorsed him.
With his awful wounds and comeback of a lifetime, Sam has already demonstrated his love for our country, the former president stated. “You can trust Sam Brown implicitly; he will never let you down!”
Brown, who was distributing water at the event, said, “I’m just focused on getting through Tuesday” when asked by AWN earlier Sunday if he anticipated approval. There is a lot for President Trump to do as well. November 5 will undoubtedly occupy everyone’s thoughts as we go through Tuesday.
The “Clear Choices of Nevada’s Republican Voters and Donors” were Brown and the former president, according to a social media post by Trump in April. The leader of the Senate GOP’s campaign arm, Montana Senator Steve Daines, personally pushed Brown to run, and Trump loyalists have criticized him for his links to mainstream Republicans. On the contrary, they have pushed for Trump’s former ambassador to Iceland, Jeff Gunter, to receive support from the former president.
Brown supported Ahern during his failed 2022 bid for the Republican nomination for the other Senate seat in the state. Brown’s gathering was sponsored by Ahern at his posh boutique hotel. This cycle, though, Ahern has endorsed Gunter and urged Trump to do the same.
Risky circumstances
With predicted highs of 104 degrees Fahrenheit on Sunday, Trump’s campaign—which has been increasingly staging outdoor events in recent months—was preparing for brutal heat.
One Trump campaign insider said that the campaign had doubled the number of EMTs stationed at the rally, brought in additional misting fans, and greatly enhanced the supply of water for the public.
According to the official, the campaign will supply over 38,000 water bottles, 20 Power Breezer misting fans distributed over the Sunset Park venue in Las Vegas, one air-conditioned cooling tent, and many pop-up umbrella tents. The addition of more metal detectors was also anticipated to facilitate the acceleration of security line processes.
Twelve individuals were sent to the hospital from Trump’s campaign rally in Phoenix owing to heat-related sickness, according to a Phoenix Fire Department spokesman who talked with AWN. This prompted the increased safety measures.