Trump to speak in Pennsylvania to start selling his economic agenda ahead of midterm elections

(WASHINGTON) — Amid criticism that he’s been focused heavily on foreign policy rather than an “America First” agenda, President Donald Trump will kick off what will be a year focused on domestic travel and touting his economic agenda with a speech in the battleground state of Pennsylvania on Tuesday, a White House official confirmed to ABC News.

Trump will push back against criticism of the economy and preview his upcoming economic plans.

“The president will be traveling to Pennsylvania to discuss how he and the Administration continue to focus on delivering on his Day 1 priority of ending Joe Biden’s inflation crisis,” the White House official said in an email to ABC News.

Trump may also hold another event similar to what is planned for Pennsylvania later this month and additional events are expected after New Year’s Day, the White House official said.

Trump has faced pushback, including from Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former top ally, for not doing more to address the high cost of living. In response, Trump has claimed that affordability is being used as a “buzzword” by Democrats ahead of next year’s midterm elections. Last week, Trump called the issue of affordability the “greatest con job.”

“It’s a con job. I think affordability is the greatest con job. They look at you and they say, ‘affordability.’ They don’t say anything else. Everyone says, ‘Oh, their prices were so low.’ No, they had the worst inflation,” Trump said, referring to Democratic critiques of his economy.

Trump defended his economic agenda in an interview with Politico published on Tuesday morning, touting the revenue his global tariffs have generated while saying he would consider more carve-outs for goods impacted by the levies that Americans find too expensive.

Trump also pushed back on critics, including Greene, who said he’s been too focused on foreign affairs.

“Most of my time is spent here. But when I do go outside, it’s only going outside for here. For instance, settling and solving the problem with China, that has a huge effect in the United States. Making deals with Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, all of these countries, you’re talking about trillions and trillions of dollars. So I could … I guess I could say let’s not deal with anybody. We wouldn’t have much of a country,” Trump told Politico.

Although Trump has extolled his economic plans, a recent Gallup poll found that only 36% of Americans approve of his handling of the economy, while 62% disapprove and 2% have no opinion.

And it’s clear that the Trump administration is feeling pressure to address concerns about the cost of living following November’s elections, which saw voters across New Jersey, Virginia and New York City push back against the president’s agenda.

In the weeks that followed, the Trump administration made shifts in its economic plans, including rolling back tariffs on some food imports in an attempt to lower grocery prices, and floating the idea of a 50-year mortgage.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News on Tuesday morning that Trump is “going to give a positive, economic-focused speech” in Pennsylvania and called on Republicans to “be more vocal about touting the accomplishments of this administration.”

White House chief of staff Susie Wiles said Trump will campaign for Republican candidates in the midterms “like it’s 2024 again.”

“The president started raising money for the midterms the day after the election, and he’s sitting on a huge war chest to help these people. And he’ll use it, and he’ll use himself, and he’ll use his money that he’s raised, probably his money too, and, and, and nobody can outwork him, so there’s every reason to be confident, but we have to actually get it done,” Wiles said on “The Mom View” podcast on Monday.

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