Former President Donald Trump vowed to end sanctuary cities and restore “normalcy” as he took questions from female voters concerned about a variety of issues ahead of Election Day, including the economy, crime and abortion.
One woman, whose son attends the University of Georgia, pressed him on the issue of crime and public safety following the murder of nursing student Laken Riley earlier this year during the exclusive town hall Wednesday on “The Faulkner Focus.”
“My son is a Georgia Bulldog. He was on campus the day Laken Riley was murdered,” the attendee told the former president. “Terrifying for all those kids, right? I wanted to know… how quickly in a sanctuary city – like they’re calling Athens, Georgia – how quickly can you remove those threats to our societies that our children can go out on a run as they rightfully should be able to do in a park in the daytime by themselves?”
“We can do things in terms of moving people out. We can move them out of the sanctuary cities. We’re going to end all sanctuary cities in the United States, and we’re going to go back to normalcy,” he pledged in response.
“And we’re going to have law and order.”
Crime consistently ranks as a top issue for Republican voters nationwide, falling right behind the economy, which polls indicate is the largest motivator as constituents head to the ballot box.
Recent polling showed former President Trump has a nine-point lead over Vice President Kamala Harris when it comes to handling the economy, the single most important issue for voters going into the 2024 presidential election.
The Gallup poll found that 54% of Americans say Trump is more capable of handling the economy, compared to 45% for Harris. The economy ranked as the most important issue for Republicans and for all Americans, but it didn’t rate in the top five for Democrats.
One woman asked him about the rising cost of living for families and his plans for the child tax credit.
“I’m a single mom to two kids here, and just in three and a half years, my child tax credit has decreased by 80%,” one attendee told Trump. “Last year, I had broken my neck, and I tried applying for any kind of assistance and was denied because I did not make less than $700 a month… what kind of realistic changes that do you think you can provide [to] single parents, married parents, any kind of parent to just simply afford children in today’s world, with the way things are here?”
“I gave you the largest tax cuts in the history of our country,” Trump said in response. “Larger than the Reagan cuts. Larger. I understand exactly what you’re saying. We’re going to readjust things so that it’s fair to everybody, because it’s really not fair to everybody… We’re going up higher, but we’re also going to readjust because you have to make some readjustments.”
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“It’s unfair to some people, and we’re not going to have that,” he continued.
Another town hall attendee, Pamela, originally from California, asked the former president about abortion, a topic that ranks among the most important for some women as they head to the ballot box.
“Women are entitled to do what they want to and need to do with their bodies, including their unborn. That’s on them regardless of the circumstance. Some are necessary to save their own lives,” she said. “Why is the government involved in women’s basic rights?”
“For 52 years, this issue has torn our country apart,” Trump responded. “Every legal scholar, the great ones, every lawyer – but the Democrats, the Republicans, the liberals, and conservatives, they wanted it brought out of the federal government and brought back to the states for a vote of the people. And like Ronald Reagan, I believe in the exceptions for rape, incest, life of the mother.”
“I strongly believe… you have to follow your heart. Some people don’t. It’s a very small percentage, but you have to follow your heart,” he continued. “But you have the exceptions. But what we were able to do was through the courage of six Supreme Court justices. We were able to do this after years and years of turmoil.”
Abortion has ranked as a top issue for Democrats heading into Election Day, alongside democracy, education and health care.
Trump also holds leads over Harris on immigration (54%-45%) and foreign affairs (52%-47%). Harris holds her own leads on the top issues for Democrats, however, including health care (54%-44%), abortion (56%-40%) and climate change (61%-35%).
Fox News’ Anders Hagstrom, Paul Steinhauser and Ashley Papa contributed to this report.
