Pennsylvania "affordability" speech veers into "hellholes" immigrant rant

At a campaign-style rally in Pennsylvania billed as a speech on combating high costs, Trump repeatedly diverted from economic talking points to blame immigrants for Americans’ struggles. He said he opposed taking people from “hellholes like Afghanistan, Haiti, Somalia and many others,” echoing his earlier "shithole countries" rhetoric and painting refugees and migrants as threats rather than victims. Coverage noted that he offered few concrete policy details on inflation but used the stage to stoke resentment against nonwhite immigrants while insisting Democrats were responsible for high prices.

"We shouldn’t be taking people from hellholes like Afghanistan, Haiti, Somalia and many others." — Pennsylvania rally framed as an economic speech but dominated by anti-immigrant rhetoric, December 9, 2025