TEMPE, Ariz. — Former president Donald Trump painted a dark picture of the United States under the Biden administration at a campaign rally here Thursday, comparing the country to “a garbage can for the world” because of illegal border crossings.

“First time I’ve ever said ‘garbage can,’” Trump said. “But you know what? It’s a very accurate description.”

The remark was a new rendition of a common refrain for Trump, who has repeatedly used dehumanizing language when talking about immigrants, accusing them of “poisoning the blood of our country” and spreading falsehoods that some were eating people’s pets. He spent much of his insult-laced rally decrying a border “invasion” that he blamed on Vice President Kamala Harris. For roughly an hour, the Republican presidential nominee interwove attacks on illegal immigration and invective aimed at Harris — the Democratic nominee — other Democratic politicians and journalists.

Advertisement

In Trump’s words, Harris’s “gross incompetence” at controlling illegal immigration disqualifies her from the presidency. Trump also called President Joe Biden “a stupid fool” and Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-California) “crazy as a bedbug.”

The former president slammed California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) as “the worst” and accused Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) of being too “petrified” to deal with migrant-fueled gang violence. Earlier this month, Trump promoted false claims that a Venezuelan gang had taken over an apartment complex in a Denver suburb.

Despite Trump’s tendency to link migrants and crime during his rallies, there is evidence that immigrants — documented or undocumented — tend to be more law-abiding than people born in the United States. Crime, including homicides and assaults, is also falling nationwide.

Advertisement

Trump repeated many of the same insults and attacks at a separate rally in Las Vegas, where he projected confidence that he’s “leading by a lot” in several swing states, despite polling showing razor-thin margins. He added that he’s “not allowed to say” that he’s way ahead and said he expects to be declared the winner on Nov. 5, despite the possibility that the result will not be clear that night.

“Pretend it’s close,” Trump said. “Everybody has to.”

With less than two weeks until Election Day, Trump’s negative messaging in Tempe and Las Vegas may linger in voters’ minds. The events are likely to be among his final pre-election appearances in the two swing states that are also key to determining control of Congress. Trump has been pitching himself as the only person who can clean up the messes made by Democrats — and he has vowed retribution against those who have crossed him.

Advertisement

That category, in Trump’s mind, includes journalists, whom he characterized Thursday as “the enemy of the people,” a return to a phrase he has used since his 2016 campaign. Trump said he hopes that “someday, they’re not going to be the enemy,” and added that some reporters are good people.

“We have to free them from the left,” Trump said of those journalists.

Trump has recently faced criticism for labeling fellow Americans as enemies. In an interview with Fox News that aired Sunday, he called Pelosi and Rep. Adam Schiff (D-California) examples of “the enemy from within.” Former White House chief of staff John F. Kelly recently told the New York Times that he was compelled to speak out against his former boss, in part because he was alarmed by Trump’s comments about using the military against the “enemy within.”

Advertisement

The Harris campaign took aim at Trump’s remarks about journalists in Tempe, calling them “a clear sign that Trump is not backing away from his dangerous rhetoric in the wake of the bombshell interview” from Kelly.

“General Kelly joins a chorus of former Trump officials — his former Secretary of Defense, his former top General, and multiple former National Security Advisors — warning that a second Trump term in which he’s surrounded by loyalists and yes-men is a risk America can’t afford,” Harris’s campaign said in a statement.

As he often does, Trump riffed and rambled during the rallies. At one point in Las Vegas, he repeated a story about using tariffs to stop an auto plant from being built outside the United States that he had recounted just 10 minutes earlier.

During the Tempe rally, which was held at Arizona State University, Trump denounced the Biden administration’s withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 and lamented that “nobody ever mentions” the 13 U.S. service members killed and others injured in a terrorist attack on the withdrawal’s last day.

Advertisement

“I mention them all the time because they are sitting at home right now,” Trump said. “They’re suffering, and it should have never, ever happened.”

Trump has previously spoken dismissively of service members. Confirming previous reporting, Kelly told CNN in October 2023 that Trump had said military members who were seriously hurt or tortured as prisoners of war were “suckers.” Those killed in combat, Trump said, were “losers,” according to Kelly.

On Thursday, Trump also criticized Biden after he said of Trump this week, “We’ve got to lock him up.”

“He’s not allowed to say that,” Trump said. “He’s such a stupid guy. He’s such a stupid fool.”

Shortly after his pronouncement about locking up Trump, who was convicted in May of falsifying business records to cover up hush money payments, Biden said he meant “politically lock him up.”

Advertisement

Skip to end of carousel

Election 2024

Follow live updates on the 2024 election and Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump from our reporters on the campaign trail and in Washington.

Check out how Harris and Trump stack up according to The Washington Post’s presidential polling averages of seven battleground states. We’ve identified eight possible paths to victory based on the candidates’ current standing in the polls.

We’ve collected Harris’s and Trump’s stances on the most important issues, including abortion, economic policy and immigration.

The Post broke down the eight races and three long shots that could determine whether Democrats lose control of the Senate. Ten competitive races will determine whether Republicans retain their narrow control of the House.

Sign up for The Campaign Moment, reporter Aaron Blake’s guide to what you really need to know about the election.

1 / 5

End of carousel

Trump’s comments about undocumented immigrants on Thursday largely focused on those who commit crimes. He described, in graphic terms, the 2016 killings of two high school girls on Long Island by members of the gang MS-13.

“We got to get these animals out of here fast, and we’re going to be heroes,” Trump said.

A few hours later, Trump’s running mate, Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), struck a more nuanced note on the issue. He said in an interview with NewsNation’s Chris Cuomo that he wanted to emphasize that he does “not think that all, or most, illegal immigrants are violent criminals.”

The races in Arizona and Nevada look to be extremely close. Trump leads in Arizona by 2 percentage points, while Harris leads in Nevada by less than 1 percentage point, according to The Washington Post’s polling average. Trump lost Arizona to Biden in 2020 by just over 10,000 votes, and in 2022, voters chose a Democrat for governor after 14 years of Republican leadership. Biden also won Nevada in 2020 by 2.4 percent.

Advertisement

Trump’s confidence that he’s leading polls, despite the close margins, could fuel a false narrative that the election was rigged — and in turn, promote violence — if he loses the race. In 2020, he tried to overturn the election result and incited a horde of people to storm the U.S. Capitol to stop Congress from certifying the outcome. This year, Trump has campaigned with a sense of bravado, while Harris’s team has framed her as an underdog.

Between Thursday’s events, Trump made an additional, unannounced appearance. He called into Vance’s NewsNation interview to ask his running mate a question: “How brilliant,” he asked, “is Donald J. Trump?”

Vance, who was sharply critical of Trump before he was selected to be his running mate, laughed.

“Sir, of course, you’re very brilliant,” he said. “And we both agree — we both agree that it’s important to have very smart people running our government.”