Donald Trump just can’t let Joe Biden go — and he proved it again on Tuesday night.
At a rally in Mount Pocono, Pennsylvania, he ditched his usual insults and went for something far more aggressive.
”I don’t have to do any polling”
Donald Trump, who has spent years calling Biden “Sleepy Joe” or “Crooked Joe”, tested out the updated nickname while addressing what he claimed was a 20,000-person crowd in Mount Pocono, Pennsylvania, on Tuesday night.
President Trump’s speech in Pennsylvania was supposed to reassure voters about rising costs. Instead, he frequently veered off message, returning again and again to his usual themes, especially immigration.
And while working the crowd, Trump slipped into a profanity-laced rant while boasting about his popularity in Pennsylvania.
“Historically, when I’ve done polls, you know, from people, you know, I do my own polls. I go to a big arena. We have 20,000 people. I say, which do you like? Sleepy Joe, crooked Joe, and I learned that I saved millions of dollars. I don’t have to do any polling. Okay? Typically, crooked Joe wins. I’m surprised, because to me, he’s a sleepy son of a b—-,” Trump said.
Targeting Ilhan Omar
Trump also targeted Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar, noting that she is Muslim and was born in Somalia. He commented on her appearance, saying she wears a “little turban,” repeated the long-debunked rumor that she married her brother, and described her home country as a “hell hole.”
He later criticized a chart shown at the event, claiming it looked like “s***” compared to the immigration chart he credited with saving his life in Butler, Pennsylvania, as he glanced toward it and narrowly avoided an assassin’s bullet.
“This is crazy because I haven’t made a speech in a little while,” he admitted, surveying the crowd. “You know, when you win, when you win, you say, ‘I can now rest.’”
Trump went on to credit his Chief of Staff, Susie Wiles, whom he jokingly called “Susie Trump” — as the person who pushed him to start holding rally-style appearances again.
“Do you know Susie Trump, sometimes referred to as Susie Wiles? Susie Trump. She’s a great chief of staff,” he said, before quickly moving on.
He continued, addressing the title itself:
”They don’t use the word chief of staff anymore because the Indians got extremely upset. But now the Indians actually want their name used. Which is true. They never didn’t want it used,” Trump said.
“But the chief of staff and she’s fantastic,” he added.
Repeatedly blamed Biden
The president’s appearance came as multiple surveys show voters growing skeptical of Trump’s economic leadership.
Republicans also suffered disappointing outcomes in recent off-cycle elections, prompting the White House to argue that the economy is stabilizing and that ongoing inflation concerns are unrelated to Biden’s policies.
Trump has repeatedly blamed Biden for “historically high inflation,” even though price increases moderated in 2022 before rising again after Trump announced his sweeping “Liberation Day” tariffs in April. Economists and businesses have warned that the import taxes could push prices higher for American consumers, a prediction that has largely come true, but Trump continues insisting the opposite.
At the White House on Monday, he claimed,
“We’re bringing prices way down. You can call it ‘affordability’ or anything you want — but the Democrats caused the affordability problem, and we’re the ones that are fixing it.”
Ignored the teleprompter
Despite using “affordability” as a signature message during the 2024 election, Trump now frequently calls the word itself a “Democrat hoax.”
Tuesday’s rally took place in the district of Republican Rep. Rob Bresnahan, who narrowly won his 2024 race by about 1.5 percentage points and is considered a top Democratic target. Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti is running for the Democratic nomination to challenge him.
During Trump’s visit, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee launched digital ads attacking Bresnahan over his stock trading and accusing Trump of failing to address corruption in Washington.
Before Trump took the stage, Bresnahan told supporters that the administration was working to lower costs, while noting that voters “aren’t asking for partisan arguments — they’re asking for results.”
About an hour into the event, Trump acknowledged that things weren’t going according to plan. His speech ultimately ran for an hour and 36 minutes.
“I haven’t read practically anything off the stupid teleprompter,” he said. “And then my speechwriters, they’re getting awards for some of the finest speeches, and I haven’t even read them,” he added with a laugh.
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