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President Trump visits Pennsylvania to talk the economy as midterms loom
The visit took place at a Mack Truck facility that saw layoffs after Trump’s tariffs were announced
President Donald Trump on Tuesday visited the Keystone State to back tariffs and other economic policies in a wide-ranging speech as his chosen slate of congressional and state candidates prepare for midterm elections in which Democrats will seek to flip the U.S. House.
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A speech at the Mack Truck facility
The president spoke before hundreds of supporters at the Mack Truck facility in Macungie Borough in Lehigh County. The crowd included backers of the president ranging from members of Congress to plant workers and those who traveled to see Trump speak.
Despite many blaming tariffs for higher costs on consumer goods, Trump said it sends a clear message: build your goods in America.
U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks at the Mack Trucks Lehigh Valley Operations facility on June 23, 2026, in Macungie, Pennsylvania.
“Right now we have more factories being built — and I mean car factories, [artificial intelligence] factories, factories of every type that we’ve ever had in the history of our country by three times,” Trump said, without evidence. “That’s because they didn’t want to pay the tariffs. How don’t you pay a tariff? You build your factory here, and you hire American workers.”
The visit took place at a Mack Truck facility that itself saw layoffs after tariffs were announced by the Trump administration, though the company’s president welcomed Trump to the manufacturing site.
Foreign policy and midterm message
Trump also took time to tout the recent peace deal with Iran to end the military conflict there, saying “Iran will never have a nuclear weapon.”
The president also took time to call for voters to return his endorsed congressional candidates to Washington, D.C., as Republicans face a test this November in trying to retain the U.S. House of Representatives, which is already divided by a slim partisan advantage.
Among those being targeted in what many view as Pennsylvania swing districts are Reps. Ryan Mackenzie, Rob Bresnahan, and Scott Perry.
President Donald Trump appears on stage with Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, Republican of Pennsylvania, during a visit to the Mack Trucks manufacturing facility in Macungie, Pennsylvania, on June 23, 2026.
Congressman Dan Meuser, R-PA District 9, defended the president and said a number of economic policies through the “Big Beautiful Bill Act” and tariffs will be viewed as wins in November.
“A lot of them don’t get attention, but we have a strong economy, and there are some issues, but the Iran conflict is winding down,” he said.
Polling and Democratic criticism
Recent polling from Franklin and Marshall College showed 29 percent of respondents gave the president a rating of “excellent” or “good” in how he is running the country.
Prior to the event, a number of Democrats speaking on a Zoom call with reporters argued the president’s policies have simply traded down the costs of tariffs to Pennsylvania consumers who are spending more and more to get by.
U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks at the Mack Trucks Lehigh Valley Operations facility on June 23, 2026, in Macungie, Pennsylvania.
“It’s making all of us worse off; costs continue to rise from gas to groceries, on top of the added uncertainties of Trump’s war of choice,” said Lt. Gov. Austin Davis.
