▲ U.S. President Donald Trump campaigns in Texas on the 27th (local time).
U.S. President Donald Trump has made another trip to Texas, considered one of the most fiercely contested battlegrounds in the midterm elections.
This marks his fourth visit in two months.
On the 27th (local time), President Trump held a campaign rally in the Texas port city of Corpus Christi to urge support for Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton and others.
During the rally, President Trump targeted James Talarico, the Democratic candidate causing a political storm in this election, denouncing him as a "communist" who advocates for transgender people and opposes oil drilling, a core industry in Texas.
President Trump's rally supporting Paxton was his third in Texas following events in Denton on October 1 and San Antonio on October 7.
Previously, on September 9–10, he also held a Republican convention in Dallas, Texas, which served as a kickoff event for the midterm elections.
President Trump's frequent visits to Texas are due to the fact that the state, long considered a Republican stronghold, has turned into a battleground.
Candidate Paxton has been struggling against candidate Talarico amid personal scandals and allegations of misconduct.
If the Republicans lose the Texas Senate race, President Trump is expected to suffer a significant political blow.
President Trump pushed aside the incumbent senator (John Cornyn) and backed Paxton, who is supported by the MAGA (Make America Great Again) faction.
Consequently, he cannot avoid taking responsibility for a defeat.
Boasting about the U.S. military's ousting of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro earlier this year, President Trump had an oil tanker carrying crude from Venezuela docked at a port near the rally site.
"You see that little ship over there," he emphasized. "That ship has 1 million barrels of oil from Venezuela, and we are celebrating the greatest oil victory in history. To the victor belong the spoils."
Last August, the United States signed an agreement securing access to one-fifth of Venezuela's oil reserves.
President Trump explained that the 1 million barrels of crude brought in this time is the initial volume under that agreement and was given as a "gift" by Venezuela.
"Venezuela is going to be a prosperous country," President Trump said. "Maybe before too long, it will become the 51st prosperous state of the United States. It's possible. Let's make Venezuela the 51st state. Then you'll be holding elections for a governor instead of a president."
President Trump also repeatedly promised the payout of the "Trump dividend," a pledge he announced during the party convention that has been criticized as vote-buying, saying, "If we win, if the Republicans win, if we win the House and the Senate, you're going to get $5,000."
President Trump was accompanied at the rally by Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is frequently mentioned as a potential future Republican presidential contender.
Called upon by President Trump, Secretary Rubio briefly took the podium and said, "It is an honor to work for the greatest president in American history."
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
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