• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Susan Dell is the one running the Dells’ $10 billion giving operation—and her biggest bets are on kids, health care, and UT Austin

2

‘He can’t run again’: MAGA merch sellers are closing shop and cutting prices. One sold $63 million but now she’s closed three stores

3

Alberta has the world’s fourth-largest oil reserves and sends 90% of its crude exports to the U.S. — It will vote on a first step to leaving Canada

1

Susan Dell is the one running the Dells’ $10 billion giving operation—and her biggest bets are on kids, health care, and UT Austin

2

‘He can’t run again’: MAGA merch sellers are closing shop and cutting prices. One sold $63 million but now she’s closed three stores

3

Alberta has the world’s fourth-largest oil reserves and sends 90% of its crude exports to the U.S. — It will vote on a first step to leaving Canada
PoliticsU.S. midterm elections

‘I can do stuff that is unbelievable.’ Trump boasts about his self-proclaimed power and tells voters DOD will revive a Kentucky drug plant if GOP wins

By
Michelle S. Price
Michelle S. Price
,
Jesse Bedayn
Jesse Bedayn
, and
The Associated Press
The Associated Press
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Michelle S. Price
Michelle S. Price
,
Jesse Bedayn
Jesse Bedayn
, and
The Associated Press
The Associated Press
Down Arrow Button Icon
October 17, 2026, 5:26 PM ET
President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at Truist Arena, Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026, in Highland Heights, Ky.
President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at Truist Arena, Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026, in Highland Heights, Ky. AP Photo/Jeff Dean
Google source logo
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

President Donald Trump touted his power in his second go around in the White House Saturday while rallying in Kentucky to bolster Republican turnout as his party struggles in the midterms, saying, “I can do stuff that is unbelievable.”

Recommended Video

Trump, who spoke in the city of Highland Heights to boost Republican candidates including Ed Gallrein for the U.S. House, was riffing on his decision to change how the U.S. government refers to the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.

“I don’t think I could have done this in my first term. This is a much more powerful term,” Trump said. “Google wouldn’t have taken my call in the first. Now, they kiss my ass.”

“Well, I also changed the name of a lake in Canada to the Lake America,” he continued, referring to Lake Ontario.

Trump’s self-proclaimed power is set against voter frustration with how he’s wielded it, with tariffs and the Iran war driving up prices and more Americans seeing the president looking out for his own interests and not those of the country.

With control of both chambers of Congress on the line, and with it the prospects of Democratic-led investigations of his administration should they win, Trump has put himself at the fore for voters, asking them to “pretend that I’m on the ballot.” But Republicans privately worry that growing disapproval of his administration is a liability.

Trump nominated one of his personal lawyers to serve as attorney general, ordered military strikes on accused drug smuggling boats, is trying to put his name on the Kennedy Center, and has enriched himselfand his family while he’s been in office.

While meandering through topics onstage in Kentucky, Trump touched on gas prices, saying that the war with Iran was going to end soon — an assertion he’s made many times over the course of the nearly eight-month conflict — and that gas prices will drop to lower than previously. The crowd cheered.

Facing the electoral headwinds, Trump is working to paint a portentous picture of Democrats in the final weeks before the midterms. That includes the claim that if his opposing party wins, the U.S. will “have a depression,” and that the Democratic platform includes abolishing the U.S. Senate and U.S. Supreme Court.

Those are not on the Democratic Party’s platform. But Trump is trying to lump them in with the Democratic Socialists of America, which have had a few candidates win in this year’s primary elections.

Trump also rehashed his dubious promise that if Republicans win the House and the Senate then every adult American would get $5,000. That would most likely cost more than $1 trillion and require congressional approval, while exacerbating the country’s nearly $1.8 trillion annual budget deficit.

Trump added a new, seemingly conditional promise for Kentucky. That if Republicans win, he said, the Department of Defense would invest in revitalizing a drug manufacturing facility in the state.

The president pulled Gallrein on stage, the Republican candidate for the U.S. House district who beat Rep. Thomas Massie in the GOP primary. Massie had aggravated Trump by pushing for the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files and opposing the Iran war, and the president responded by successfully backing Gallrein in the party’s primary.

Massie, however, still has a following for standing on his staunchly conservative principles, even when it meant voting against his own party. When Trump lashed out at Massie as a “jerk” and “loser” and trumpeted Gallrein as a more loyal replacement, the crowd’s response was tepid, with about half the arena clapping at Trump’s barbs and other half silent.

Fortune Daily breaks the traditional barrier between audience and newsroom. The show transforms Fortune’s trusted reporting into actionable, conversational, and entertaining insights for an emerging class of business leaders. Watch here.
About the Authors
By Michelle S. Price
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
By Jesse Bedayn
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
By The Associated Press
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Google source logo
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Politics


Most Popular

Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

    Recommended For You

    © 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
    FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.