Donald Trump Calls Detroit an Example of Hillary Clinton's 'Failed Agenda': Update

Updated: DETROIT, MI — Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on Monday offered bullet points of what he promised would be a sweeping economic plan that will return the United States to prosperity, while at the same time continuing his assault on trade agreements he said have cost American jobs.

The New York real estate tycoon spent most of the speech before the Detroit Economic Club separating himself from his Democratic opponent, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and undercutting her support among working class families.

“Detroit is the breathing example of my opponent’s failed economic agenda,” Trump said. “She supports the high taxes and radical regulation that forced jobs out of your community.”

Trump promised to reveal more details of his plan later, but some of the highlights include:

• Reducing the number of tax brackets to three — 12 percent, 25 percent and 33 percent, the same as House Republican — a plan he said would result in many Americans would paying no tax at all.
• Fully funding the child-care credit;
• Tearing up and re-negotiating trade agreements like the Trans-Pacific Partnership and North American Free Trade Agreement;
• Cutting the corporate income tax to 15 percent from 35 percent;
• Placing a moratorium on new business regulations;
• Repealing and replacing Obamacare, which he said would save millions of jobs.

“When we abandoned the policies of America first, we started rebuilding other countries rather than our own,” Trump said, noting that “skyscrapers went up in Beijing and other cities while factories in Detroit and other cities closed."

Trump said his policies offer “much needed relief” for America’s working families and prosperity for “those who have the very least” — themes that appeared aimed at undercutting Clinton’s support among working families.

“When we reform tax, trade and regulatory policies, we will open a new chapter in American prosperity that is so desperately needed,” Trump said, adding new wealth created by his policies will be invested in rebuilding the military and the nation’s crumbling infrastructure.

Clinton, who speaks in Detroit on Thursday, “has long ago run out of ideas,” Trump said.

In the speech that ended in a standing ovation, Trump avoided some of the gaffes that sent his poll numbers into a free-fall last week and resulted in some high- profile Republicans disavowing his candidacy. Clinton has a 7-point lead, according to a national poll average on Real Clear Politics.

Trump, who handily won the Michigan primary in March, faced a more critical audience Monday than at many of his rallies.

Protesters interrupted the candidate about a dozen times, but he simply acknowledged them and moved on, a signal that the fiery candidate is seeking to change the conversation about his candidacy.

On Monday, 50 of the nation's highest ranking Republican national security officials, many of them part of former President George W. Bush's administration, have signed a letter declaring Trump “lacks the character, values and experience” to be president and “would put at risk our country’s national security and well-being,” The New York Times reported.

One of the latest Republicans to distance himself from Trump was former Michigan governor William Milliken, who broke ranks with the party to endorse Clinton. Milliken served as governor from 1969-1983, before term limits.

“This nation has long prided itself on its abiding commitments to tolerance, civility and equality. We face a critically important choice in this year's presidential election that will define whether we maintain our commitment to those ideals or embark on a path that has doomed other governments and nations throughout history,” Milliken, a moderate Republican from Traverse City, said in a statement. “I am saddened and dismayed that the Republican Party this year has nominated a candidate who has repeatedly demonstrated that he does not embrace those ideals.

“Because I feel so strongly about our nation's future, I will be joining the growing list of former and present government officials in casting my vote for Hillary Clinton for president in 2016.”

Gov. Rick Snyder also didn’t plan to attend Trump’s speech, spokeswoman Anna Heaton told the Detroit Free Press. He has declined to endorse Trump, though he has made positive comments about his running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, who made a surprise appearance at the Cobo Center and described Trump as a genuinely nice individual who interacts well with supporters.

Other top Republicans have said Trump still has time to overcome the polling deficits.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani said Sunday that Trump still can win in November, despite what the polls suggest.

"First of all, 8 points down at this stage, of course you'd rather be ahead, but I remember George Bush the first being 16 points down to [Michael] Dukakis going into September. So let's, you know, calm down," he said on on ABC's "This Week."

"Everyone should calm down about it," Giuliani said. "There's certainly every opportunity for Trump to win this election."

Image credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr / Creative Commons