Donald Trump talks tariffs, manufacturing at Savannah campaign stop

SAVANNAH, Ga. - Former President Donald Trump announced his plan to lure foreign companies to the U.S. in Georgia as his campaign pushes to secure the state's electoral votes.

The Republican nominee discussed the new pledge at Savannah's Johnny Mercer Theatre Civic Center on Tuesday afternoon. 

Trump spoke for 90 minutes and covered a wide range of issues from illegal immigration to the attempts on his life, mainly focusing on his economic plan.

"We love Georgia," the former president said.

Among the ideas Trump pitched is offering foreign access to federal land. He teased the plan earlier this month when he proposed a cut in the corporate tax rate from 21% to 15%, but only for companies that produce in the U.S.

The former president also vowed to help state and local officials deepen the port of Savannah to spur economic growth. 

"We're doing very well in Georgia we're leading by quite a bit," Trump said.  

Trump's opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, wants to raise it to 28%. The corporate rate had been 35% when the New York businessman became president in 2017, and he later signed a bill lowering it.

"We're going to bring thousands and thousands of businesses and trillions and trillions of wealth back to the U.S.A.," Trump told the crowd. "We're going to be doing it and doing it fast."

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The president said that, if president, he would offer "every major company and manufacturer on earth" low tax rates, low energy costs, few regulations, and access to U.S. markets.

"If you don't make your product here, then you will have to pay a tarrif - a very substantial tariff - if you want to sell your product in the United States," he said.

As part of his speech, Trump focused on auto production in Mexico, saying that he would implement a 100% tariff on any vehicle important from the United State's southern neighbor.

Trump has pressed Harris on the economy and proposed using tariffs on imports and other measures to boost American industry, even as economists warn U.S. consumers would bear the costs of tariffs and other Trump proposals like staging the largest deportation operation in U.S. history.

It is unclear whether foreign companies would be attracted by some of these incentives he says he will adopt if elected to the White House. The former president also had a spotty record in the White House of attracting foreign investment. For example, Trump promised a $10 billion investment by Taiwan-based electronics giant Foxconn in Wisconsin, creating potentially 13,000 new jobs, that the company never delivered.

It’s also not clear how possible it is for a president to offer these perks to foreign corporations. The Bureau of Land Management has restrictions on foreign entities looking to lease land.

Trump's visit will be followed by an appearance by his running mate, Sen. JD Vance, who is expected to deliver remarks at a Get Out the Vote Rally in Flowery Branch on Thursday.

Georgia's presidential election impact

With less than two months until Election Day, both Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris have targeted Georgia as one of the key states needed to reach 270 electoral college votes.

Harris is casting a wide net, depending on Democrats’ diverse coalition and hoping to add moderate and even conservative Republicans repelled by the former president. Trump, while seeking a broad working-class coalition with his tax ideas, is digging in on arguments about the country — and his political opponents — that are aimed most squarely at his most strident supporters.

Harris spent her last visit to the Peach State targeting Trump and Georgia Republicans on women's health and reproductive rights, saying that the state's current restrictions on abortion have led to devastating consequences for women.

Georgia’s law bans most abortions once a "detectable human heartbeat" is present, which can be as early as six weeks. The law includes exceptions for rape and incest, as long as a police report is filed, and allows for later abortions when the mother’s life is at risk or a serious medical condition renders a fetus unviable. 

"Survivors of rape and incest are being told they cannot make decisions about what happens next to their bodies. And now women are dying. These are the consequences of Donald Trump’s actions," Harris said in response to a report by ProPublica on two women who died after the state's ban went into effect.

Republicans have fought back against Harris' claims, with Vance heralding the GOP's stance on abortion rights at a fundraising dinner in Atlanta earlier this month.

Gov. Brian Kemp, who spoke before Vance at the same dinner, argued that Georgia's LIFE Act "expanded support for expectant mothers."

Georgia voting rule changes

Trump's visit also comes days after Georgia's controversial State Election Board voted to approve a new rule requiring poll workers to count the number of paper ballots by hand after voting is completed, a change that critics worry could delay the reporting of election night results.

Three Republican board members who were praised by Trump during his August rally voted to approve the measure, while the lone Democrat on the board and the nonpartisan chair voted to reject it.

Georgia's Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger, addressed the board's recent decisions on Friday in an emailed statement, "Attorney General Chris Carr has stated that these rules would not withstand a legal challenge, and I have worked every day to strengthen Georgia’s election law to ensure our elections remain safe, secure, and free." 

On Monday, the board made additional changes, voting unanimously to require county governments to provide ballot scans within 72 hours of Election Day. 

Some groups, including the ACLU of Georgia, have said they plan to challenge the rule changes in court.