Trump vows to impose harsh tariffs, stokes fear of immigrants in 80-minute Las Vegas speech

Trump also spent part of his Thursday speech encouraging his supporters to vote early and by mail in a reversal of his stance four years ago, when he baselessly claimed those methods couldn’t be trusted.

Amid strong early turnout from registered Republican voters in Nevada, Donald Trump on Thursday night visited Las Vegas, where he touted his controversial economic and mass deportation plans, attacked his Democratic opponent, Kamala Harris, lied about her record and his, and claimed that he could have prevented the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Gaza. 

Trump spoke for more than an hour before a crowd of about 12,000 at UNLV’s Thomas And Mack Center, a venue that can hold nearly 20,000 people and where about 14,000 came to see Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris in August. 

The former president, at times rambling, falsely claimed Harris would raise taxes by as much as 80% on Americans should she be elected, while promising to eliminate taxes on tips, overtime pay, and Social Security benefits — the latter of which could zero out the Social Security Trust fund in six years, according to a new report from the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. 

Harris has said she would not reauthorize the 2017 tax cuts signed into law by Trump that are set to expire next year — which cut corporate taxes for the largest companies from 35% to 21% —  and would instead seek to raise taxes on wealthy earners making more than $400,000 per year and raise the corporate tax rate from 21% to 28%. 

Trump also promised to lower Nevada housing costs, partly through mass deportation of undocumented immigrants, whom he has repeatedly (and baselessly) sought to blame for the nation’s housing crisis. Following through with a mass deportation plan could actually cause housing prices to increase, home builders argue, since foreign-born workers make up roughly 30% of construction workers, but Trump has continued to insist such a deportation program would help resolve the nation’s housing shortage.

“I will rescue every town across America that has been invaded and conquered,” Trump said of immigrants, stating falsely that gangs from Central and South America have overrun towns in states like Colorado. “It’s out of control. And we have a lot of towns that haven’t yet been infected, but they’re petrified that they will be.” 

Trump promised that if elected, he would work to construct a missile defense system similar to the “Iron Dome” apparatus that shields Israel, and claimed it would be built at least partially in Nevada. He also promised to use tariffs to not only achieve more favorable trade conditions with other countries, but to also strongarm American companies into returning manufacturing jobs to the US (experts recently told The Nevadan that Trump’s tariff plan is not feasible and would instead likely spike inflation and shrink economic growth over the next decade). 

“I can make anybody do anything through the use of tariffs,” Trump said. “I can keep people out of war, I can keep us out of war.”

Trump has proposed a 60% tariff on goods imported from China and a 20% tariff on all other imports. A recent analysis from The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) estimated that Trump’s tariff and tax plans would raise taxes for 95% of Americans.

In a reversal from four years ago, when then-President Trump emphatically stressed to supporters that mail voting and early voting efforts couldn’t be trusted – and later used those baseless claims as the basis for trying to overturn his defeat — Trump spent part of his Thursday speech encouraging his supporters to now use those methods. 

“Nevada, you have to stand up, and you have to tell Kamala Harris you can’t take it anymore,” Trump said Thursday during a Las Vegas rally promoted by the conservative group Turning Point Action. 

He then delved into a bizarre hypothetical argument between a wife and her husband, Hank. 

“Get your husband Hank,” Trump continued. “Get the hell out from the couch, Hank. Get that big fat ass out and vote, Hank. We’re gonna turn this country around.” 

As of Thursday afternoon, more than 425,000 Nevadans, or about 21% of active registered voters, have already participated in early voting, according to data published by the Nevada Secretary of State and the Clark County Clerk’s office. Registered Republicans have to this point submitted roughly 16,000 more ballots than registered Democrats statewide — 168,502 to 152,104 — while those registered as independents have cast 104,721 ballots through Thursday. 

Many of Thursday’s speakers, which included Nevada US Senate hopeful Sam Brown, former Democrat-turned-Republican Tulsi Gabbard, Turning Point founder Charlie Kirk and others, told the crowd the strong early vote showing will need to continue in order to turn Nevada. 

And they demonstrated as much, with organizers having placed a number of ballot collection bins outside the arena. A Trump campaign spokesperson was unable to confirm the exact number of ballots that were harvested, but rallygoers told The Nevadan they’re embracing early voting this election. 

“I think everyone realizes that’s the game,” Utah resident Alex Burnham said of early voting methods. “Traditionally, I’ve waited until Election Day. But the rules have changed, you know? We can’t just show up on Election Day now. You have to go out and follow the rules of the game that are played now.” 

Sidney Castro of Las Vegas told The Nevadan this year she decided to vote for the first time ever, and was in attendance Thursday to show her support of Trump. 

“I never thought voting made a difference, but it does make a difference,” Castro said. “And, the more people you see vote, the more you’re open about it. I had never done that before, but it feels great.” 

While Republicans hold a turnout advantage in early voting, not all traditional Republicans are backing Trump this year. Nationally, notable conservatives like former US Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger have endorsed Harris and are spearheading efforts to coalesce disenchanted Republicans around Harris. 

Hours before Trump took the stage Thursday, a group of Nevada Republican voters supporting Harris organized by her campaign told reporters the former president is simply too extreme for Nevada. 

“I am ready to turn the page on Donald Trump and his dangerous Project 2025 agenda that will raise costs, take away our freedoms, and threaten our rights as Latinos,” said Maggie Arias Petrel, of Las Vegas.

She further highlighted recent comments from Trump suggesting, if re-elected, he would use the military to handle “the enemy from within,” focusing particularly on Democratic lawmakers.  

“He’s threatening to use the National Guard against his fellow Americans. He doesn’t represent Republican and American values,” Arias Petrel said.

Nevada residents eligible to vote can either register or participate in early voting until Nov. 1, though residents can also either register or vote in person at any polling place in their county of residence on Election Day, Nov. 5. Mail ballots must be postmarked by Election Day in order to be counted. 

“This will be the biggest political event in our country,” Trump said of the election. “Don’t take any chances. Go out and vote.”