5 things Donald Trump said at his Bakersfield rally: From Gavin Newsom to Devin Nunes
President Donald Trump stopped in Bakersfield on Wednesday to talk about water for farmers, but in his trademark from-the-cuff style he remarked on high-speed rail, the border wall and California politicians.
Trump signed a decision finalizing new biological opinions and allowing more water to flow through the Delta to southern regions in California.
Thousands of supporters packed JACO hangar at the Meadows Field Airport. At the end, a chant of “four more years” serenaded the president.
Here are five memorable things Trump said during the visit.
On water
Trump said the water decision he signed will increase both water supply and storage for farmers.
“It’s going to give you a lot of water, and a lot of dams and a lot of everything, and we’re going to do things you never thought possible.”
As a candidate, Trump said he promised to “help the water crisis that was crippling the farmers.” As president, he’s kept that promise, he said.
He also said the state rations water. “Somebody explain to me why you ration water when you have so much water.”
On California leaders
Trump railed against California Gov. Gavin Newsom: “We can be nice to him, we can be rough with him, we can do whatever we need to do. I’d love to be nice to him.”
The president said he loves California, but the state needs “the right governor.”
“I love your state, I understand your state. You have the potential like no place else, but you need the right governor.”
One of the loudest cheers from the crowd came when Trump talked about Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, the San Francisco Democrat.
“Get rid of Pelosi,” he said.
On Valley leaders
Trump was joined on stage at the Bakersfield event by the Republican congressmen who represent central san Joaquin Valley districts: Kevin McCarthy, Devin Nunes and Tom McClintock. He spoke highly of the three, referring to them as “warriors.”
Of Nunes, the president said, “He became a hero because he found out what was going on in government, and he found out about the hoax,” referencing issues that swirled during Trump’s impeachment trial.
He joked that the wives of the congressmen “put up with a lot.”
On high-speed rail
Trump also referenced California’s legal fight with the federal government over the state’s high-speed rail plan. He also talked about the cost of the project: “Billions and billions and billions of dollars.
“It was originally supposed to go from San Francisco to Los Angeles, and now, in order to get the cost down, pretty soon it will be a mile long,” he said.
On the border wall
“The wall is moving along,” Trump said about building a U.S.-Mexico border wall, again to cheers from the crowd.
He said 122 miles of the wall is complete, and soon that number will grow to 500 miles.
This story was originally published February 19, 2020 at 4:49 PM with the headline "5 things Donald Trump said at his Bakersfield rally: From Gavin Newsom to Devin Nunes."