Trump hits the road in his campaign to change perceptions of the economy

ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. — In a campaign-style speech Friday night, President Donald Trump made his latest effort to persuade Americans that he is reducing costs and improving the economy, while also veering off into lengthy riffs that had nothing to do with either.

Trump is facing growing pressure to demonstrate that his policies are making groceries and other necessities more affordable. Recent polls have shown that voters are unhappy about economic conditions and blaming Trump for not doing enough to fix them.

Eager to stave off losses in the midterm congressional elections next year, Trump is stepping up efforts to show that he is already producing results and that voters will see their financial burdens lighten as his term goes on. On Wednesday, he gave a rare primetime address to the nation— an opening bid in his campaign to change perceptions that the economy is weak.

“We’re fixing four years of disaster and decline,” Trump said Friday at an event center in eastern North Carolina, a perennial battleground state where Republicans are trying to hold a Senate seat in 2026.

“We were a dead country, and now we’re talking about the golden age of America — think of it, in 10 months,” Trump said.

Trump suggested that his negotiating style is paying dividends for Americans who are struggling to pay for prescription medication. He recounted how he had threatened his French counterpart, Emmanel Macron, with higher tariffs unless he agreed to a new drug price regime that will slash costs in the U.S. Reluctantly, Macron complied, Trump said.

“I said if you don’t do it I’m going to charge you a 25% tariff on everything you sell to America.” Trump said.

Earlier in the day, Trump announced a deal with nine pharmaceutical companies that agreed to cut drug prices for Medicaid recipients and those who buy medications in cash, as opposed to buying them via their insurance policies.

As Trump stood at the lectern, a sign behind him read, “Lower Prices, Bigger Paychecks.”

But Trump had other things on his mind as well. The 90-minute appearance also included him skewering Reps. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn. and Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga. He name-checked his opponent in the 2016 presidential race, Hillary Clinton.

"She was smart, but she was nasty," Trump told the crowd. "I wouldn't want to go home to her. She was nasty. Remember, she was a nasty person. I was going to use the B-word," he said, but added that he held off because Melania Trump, the first lady, would have objected.

Trump said he’s in good health and has passed various cognitive tests. Speculation about Trump’s fitness has become more pronounced as he has seemed to nod off at times in meetings and has sported a large bruise on his right hand.

“Now, there will be a time when perhaps I won’t be 100%,” said the president, who is 79 years old. “True with all of us. And when that time comes, I will let you know about it and in fact, you will probably find out about it just by watching. But that time is not now, because I feel the same that I felt for 50 years.”

The president also made clear he was still angry over the 2022 FBI search for classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago home after his first term ended.

“They went into my wife’s closet,” he said, accusing the federal agents who entered the home unannounced of leaving behind "a mess."

“And she said, ‘Oh, what happened? It’s so terrible.”

Trump sued the government over the search and noted the irony of now being positioned to settle the case.

He mused about keeping the money — “a lot of people say, ‘do it,’” he said — but indicated that he would instead give any amount to charity.

“But isn’t that a strange position to be in? I’ve got to make a deal and negotiate with myself,” he said.

Democrats are vowing to hammer the issue of affordability in midterm election campaigns. Prices have already played a major role in Democratic victories in a pair of races for governor this year. Some Republicans have called on Trump to keep a tight focus on reducing costs.

But a series of distractions, some of his own making, have at times diluted the message he sets out to deliver.

Fresh controversies arose just this week. On Monday, Trump suggested on social media that famed film director and actor Rob Reiner was killed because of his contempt for the president, a baseless argument that drew blowback from fellow Republicans.

As the week ended, workers attached Trump’s name to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, angering the family of the slain ex-president.

And Jeffrey Epstein, the late financier and convicted sex offender, continues to loom over Trump's second term. On Friday, the Department of Justice released a trove of investigative files involving Epstein, under a deadline set by a bill that Congress passed last month and Trump signed into law.

"His message on affordability a month ago was, don't tell me about affordability; it's a hoax; Biden caused this," said Mark Mitchell, head pollster at Rasmussen Reports, who privately briefed Trump and senior White House officials last month.

"You can see they're trying to change their tune a little bit: talking about housing, saying they're going to rebuild the American dream," Mitchell continued. "But we're looking at 320 days until the midterms, and my advice was you really need to show America that Republicans and Trump can govern together and address the really deep problems."

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com