Trump calls on voters to 'deliver justice' to Clinton
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump urged thousands of supporters Sunday night in Moon to “deliver justice” to Hillary Clinton at the ballot box on Election Day.
After that, Trump said, “The investigations into her crimes will go on for a long, long time. ... Hillary Clinton is guilty. She knows it, the FBI knows it, the people know it.”
Earlier Sunday, FBI Director James Comey reiterated that Clinton should not face criminal charges over her mishandling of classified information while secretary of State. Nine days ago, Comey said the agency would review new Clinton-related emails that surfaced as part of a separate investigation.
“Right now, she's being protected by a rigged system. You can't review 650,000 new emails in eight days,” Trump said inside a Pittsburgh International Airport hangar in what figures to be his last campaign stop in Western Pennsylvania before Tuesday's election.
While Trump questioned the FBI's email review because it didn't result in a recommendation of criminal charges being pursued against Clinton, the FBI's review appeared to improve Trump's prospects for the presidency.
RealClearPolitics' polling average on Sunday showed Clinton with a 2.4 percentage point over Trump in Pennsylvania, where 20 electoral votes are at stake. A candidate needs at least 270 votes to win the White House.
Clinton held a 6-point lead in Pennsylvania as recently as Tuesday. Polls released since then, all of which were conducted after the FBI announced the review of the new emails, played a role in narrowing the margin.
Trump took the stage in Moon nearly 2½ hours later than scheduled in what was his fourth campaign stop of the day.
Trump's campaign said 9,000 people crammed into the Moon hangar, and another 3,500 people couldn't get in.
While they waited, they chanted pro-Trump and anti-Clinton slogans, jeered the media, hit beach balls and, at one point, loudly booed when Bruce Springsteen music played over the loudspeaker. Springsteen is a Clinton supporter who is scheduled to perform at her large rally Monday night in Philadelphia. Clinton is to appear at a rally at the University of Pittsburgh earlier Monday.
In his 25-minute speech, Trump reinforced the campaign messages that he has focused on throughout the race — particularly the ones about manufacturing and trade, which have been focal points during his frequent visits to Western Pennsylvania.
“When we win, we are bringing steel back. We are bringing steel back to Pennsylvania like it used to be. We are putting our steelworkers and our coal miners back to work,” Trump said.
Trump said the economic policies of the Clintons, including the North American Free Trade Agreement, have “bled Pennsylvania dry.”
Trump also promised to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, and heavily criticized the news media, as he has done throughout his campaign.
“The momentum is there for Trump,” said Grant Twiss, 57, of Erie. “What's there to be excited about Hillary?”
Twiss, who attended Sunday's rally with his wife, Wendy, and 9-year-old granddaughter, Kara, said he believes Trump's policies would spur job growth and he'd run government like a business.
“That's what our country needs. This economy has been limping along for eight years. I think people have had enough,” Twiss said.
Tom Fontaine is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 412-320-7847 or tfontaine@tribweb.com.
