Trump bashes NAFTA, Obamacare in Canton

Combined dispatches

Republican Donald Trump was was met by an enthusiastic crowd of about 4,500 in Canton on Wednesday night as he attacked policies like NAFTA – “the worst trade deal in the history of the world” – Obamacare and Democrat Hillary Clinton’s “deplorables” comment.

Trump, fresh from a trip to Flint, Mich., earlier Wednesday, spoke for about 40 minutes in the Canton Memorial Civic Center, and attacked the water crisis in Flint as a “failure of government at every level.”

“A thing like that should never happen in the United States of America. This is what happens when we build up other countries instead of our own. It’s America first now folks, America first,” Trump said.

He promised policies that would bring hope back to Flint, which has lost tens of thousands of auto manufacturing jobs.

Trump one-lined that “It used to be cars were made in Flint and you couldn’t drink the water in Mexico. Now cars are made in Mexico and you can’t drink the water in Flint.”

The Republican nominee, who came in second in Stark County in the March 15 primary, after Ohio Gov. John Kasich. He has made several campaign appearances in eastern Ohio, including three in the Mahoning Valley this year.

Trump said Ford announced earlier Wednesday that it was moving “all small vehicle production to Mexico,” and noted he has been practically predicting the move for months. He said — without saying how he would accomplish it — that any Fords made in Mexico would get a 35 percent tariff tacked on in the United States.

In discussing Ford’s possible move to Mexico, Trump said he couldn’t try to stop Ohio manufacturers from moving to other states.

“The reason they announced today is they think I’m going to win and they want to beat the deadline.”

Mr. Trump made a point of saying he respects the right of those who don’t support him.

“Hillary Clinton calls people who aren’t supporting her deplorable and irredeemable. I call people who aren’t supporting me American citizens who are entitled to the same respect as anyone else,” the New York billionaire said.

NEW OHIO POLL

Trump leads Clinton by 5 percentage points in a Bloomberg Politics poll of Ohio, a gap that underscores the Democrat’s challenges in critical Rust Belt states after one of the roughest stretches of her campaign.

The Republican nominee leads Clinton 48 percent to 43 percent among likely voters in a two-way contest and 44 percent to 39 percent when third-party candidates are included.

Trump’s performance in the poll – including strength among men, independents and union households – is better than in other recent surveys of the state. It deals a blow to Clinton after she enjoyed polling advantages nationally and in most battleground states in August.

COLIN POWELL EMAILS

In other news tied to the campaign, former Secretary of State Colin Powell calls GOP nominee Donald Trump “a national disgrace” and an “international pariah,” in emails leaked by a site with ties to Russian intelligence.

Buzzfeed News reported it had viewed the emails obtained by the website DCLeaks, which reportedly has ties to Russian intelligence. The FBI said in July it believed Russia was behind the email hack of the Democratic National Committee and other Democratic groups.

In a June 17, 2016, email to Emily Miller, a former aide, Powell said Trump “is in the process of destroying himself, no need for Dems to attack him. (Speaker of the House) Paul Ryan is calibrating his position again.”

The emails also show Powell is upset with Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton for casting blame on him for using a private email server while she was secretary of state.

CLINTON’S HEALTH

Hoping to put the issue of her health behind her as she gets ready to return to the campaign trail, Hillary Clinton on Wednesday released an updated review of her physical fitness and details about a recent bout of pneumonia.

“She is recovering well with antibiotics and rest,” said her doctor, Lisa Bardack, in a letter released by her campaign. “She continues to remain healthy and fit to serve as President of the United States.”

The details made public by the Democratic presidential nominee included a description of the pneumonia diagnosis she received last week. Her illness became public after she left Sunday’s 9/11 memorial service in New York early and was seen on video staggering while getting into a van.

The health episode fueled long-simmering conservative conspiracy theories about Clinton’s health and provided a fresh line of attack for rival Donald Trump, who has frequently questioned whether Clinton has the stamina to serve as commander in chief.

The Republican nominee, meanwhile, handed over a one-page summary of a recent physical exam to the celebrity doctor Mehmet Oz while taping an episode of Oz’s talk show. But voters will have to wait another day for details: the show does not air until Thursday.

The letter from Bardack, the chair of internal medicine at CareMount Medical in Mount Kisco, New York, said a chest scan revealed the candidate had “mild, non-contagious bacterial pneumonia.” She was treated with a 10-day course of Levaquin, an antibiotic used to treat infections.

Clinton, 68, has blood pressure of 100 over 70 — within healthy levels and not signaling the need for any medications. She has also had a normal mammogram and breast ultrasound, according to the letter.