Trump doubles down on failed agenda as his support collapses

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a Turning Point USA event at Dream City Church in Phoenix, Arizona, U.S., April 17, 2026. REUTERS/Evan Vucci

President Donald Trump is historically unpopular and his approval ratings are underwater in Arizona and the other six swing states he won in 2024, largely because independent voters have abandoned him. With the mid-terms rapidly approaching, the president came to Phoenix to gin up support for Republicans — not by reaching out to those disaffected voters but instead by rallying the MAGA faithful and calling for Republican Party unity.

The rally at a north Phoenix church, hosted by Turning Point USA, brought conservative activists and Trump die-hards together to support a slate of candidates in order to “Build The Red Wall.”

The rally also served as a platform to drive Trump-supporting voters to support U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs in his bid for governor.

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Biggs, a Trump loyalist who has connections to the events surrounding the 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, is facing off against fellow GOP Congressman David Schweikert in the Republican primary election. The winner will challenge Democratic incumbent Katie Hobbs in November.

While the thousands of MAGA voters inside Dream City Church got to hear from Biggs himself, Schweikert’s campaign was blanketing cars in the parking lot with fliers for the Scottsdale Republican.

Biggs has Trump’s endorsement, which may serve him well in a primary election but could be a liability in the general election, especially given Trump’s broad unpopularity.

And if Biggs does get his party’s nomination, he is likely to face an uphill battle against Hobbs, who ended this March with nearly $7.2 million in the bank, about six times what Biggs and Schweikert combined have in the bank.

Democrats see 2026 as a chance to repudiate Trumpism, and are expected to spend heavily to defeat Republicans up and down the ballot.

That was front of mind for many of the speakers, including some GOP officeholders who could be on the receiving end of a Democratic campaign operation that is flush with cash and hoping to capitalize on voters’ dissatisfaction with Trump and Republican governance.

“Republicans are not the solution to all of your problems, but Democrats are pretty much the cause of all your problems,” U.S. Rep. Eli Crane, whose district is a prime target for Democrats, told the crowd. “It is time for us to coalesce right now as much as possible.”

Crane and U.S. Rep. Juan Ciscomani, who represents the most competitive district in Arizona, have gotten influxes of cash this cycle from Republican leadership with Ciscomani getting one of the highest amounts of any other Republican outside of Republican House leadership.

Ciscomani bragged about his victory in 2022 in what he said is “the most competitive district in the entire country,” and which gave Republicans control of the U.S. House of Representatives.Ciscomani also emphasized to the crowd the importance of electing the man running to replace Biggs, former Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb and former NFL kicker Jay Feely, who is running to take the seat that Schweikert currently holds — another top target for Democrats.

While speakers openly praised each other and pushed for unity, some division was seen.

At one point, a cacophony of boos filled the church sanctuary when U.S. Rep. Paul Gosar urged attendees to vote for Rodney Glassman for attorney general over Senate President Warren Petersen. Hours later, Trump gave Petersen a shout-out from the stage.

The elected officials and candidates who spoke gave typical stump speeches, with many focusing on culture war issues that have become the party’s bread and butter in the Trump era.

Last year’s shooting death of TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk loomed over many speeches, with many of the speakers talking about their past interactions with the man and their support of his widow, Erika Kirk, who now serves as TPUSA’s CEO.

When Trump took the stage late in the afternoon, he spent roughly 40 minutes jumping from topic to topic.

The president bragged about the war in Iran, claiming that he was winning it and it would be the “tenth war” he has ended. His claims of ending wars are over-inflated.

“This was just a military excursion,” Trump said of Iran. “This wasn’t the big time.”

The U.S. and Israel launched the war seven weeks ago. So far, 13 American soldiers have died and hundreds have been wounded. Negotiations with Iran are ongoing.

Trump also made light of the arguably illegal boat strikes conducted by his administration, which have resulted in the deaths of at least 170 people. Trump claimed they had stopped 97% of boats carrying drugs.

“Trying to find the 3%, because I believe them to be the bravest people in the world. Boom,” Trump said to the crowd, who erupted in cheers and laughs.

After speaking about a surprise raid earlier this year to arrest Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, he alluded to some sort of impending action against the nation of Cuba, saying that the administration was working on something that was “70 years in the making.”

“We are going to help them out with Cuba,” the president said.

Earlier this week, USA Today reported that the Pentagon has begun quietly ramping up for a possible invasion of Cuba.

Towards the end of his speech Trump personally called out a number of lawmakers in attendance, including Rep. Alexander Kolodin, who is running for Secretary of State. He is facing off against Gina Swoboda, the former chair of the Arizona Republican Party, who had gotten Trump’s endorsement when she was running to replace Schweikert in Congress.

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