ROCKY MOUNT — President Donald Trump came to Rocky Mount on Friday night, standing squarely inside North Carolina’s 1st Congressional District, but left without endorsing any of the Republicans competing in the district’s crowded GOP primary. More on that in a minute.
Trump’s visit focused on national issues, the economy, immigration and his full-throated support for U.S. Senate candidate Michael Whatley. Other folks spoke, including Watley and NC Senator and powerbroker Phil Berger — both of whom Trump has endorsed.
Trigger warning to the TDS crowd — Trump gave a good speech that touched on the economy and a variety of issues at the Rocky Mount Event Center.
Don’t believe us – see the full remarks here.
Big crowd – “HUGE” – attended Trump’s speech with many Republicans from across the 1st Congressional District posting photos or snippets of live video feed. The feature photo comes from Laurie Buckhout, and this photo (below) from Bobby Hanig — both congressional candidates for District 1. Many familiar faces in that photo.
The mainstream love Trump so much that reporters from many news outlets attended the speech – so expect to read or see many news stories that are slanted against Trump and meticulously fact checked – that never seemed to happen when former President Biden gave a speech when we had a “robust” economy that required many folks to take out a 30-year mortgage to afford groceries during his presidency.
No Endorsement
Let’s start with the elephant in the room – see what I did there? Republicans — elephants…
Several congressional hopefuls were in attendance, including Laurie Buckhout, state Sen. Bobby Hanig and Carteret County Sheriff Asa Buck. Despite their presence — and despite Trump holding the event within the district — he declined to endorse any of them.
Candidate filing ended at noon Friday, and five Republicans are hoping to unseat Rep. Don Davis, a Democrat from Snow Hill, in a district redrawn to favor Republicans by roughly 10 points.
Even if well-placed sources hadn’t told me Trump wasn’t going to make an endorsement, that shouldn’t come as a surprise to many folks who pay attention to such things.
Trump did not hold back when it came to criticizing Democrats — particularly Rep. Davis, whom Republicans are targeting in 2026.
“Don Davis voted against no tax on overtime. He voted against no tax on tips, and he voted for the largest tax increase in American history,” Trump said. “I’m good at politics — I’ve never even heard of this guy, so he hasn’t made a big impact.”
After the event, Davis did not return any trash talk, but instead responded to Trump’s speech with this post to social media.
“With families struggling to put food on the table amid rising costs and farmers feeling the effects of tariffs, I am standing firm in my commitment to improving the lives of eastern North Carolinians. I welcome President Trump to join me in focusing on solutions that lower costs, protect healthcare, create jobs, open markets and strengthen families and communities across eastern North Carolina.”
Jobs and the Economy
The Rocky Mount event lasted roughly 90 minutes and carried a campaign-style tone, despite being billed as an official White House appearance. Trump moved fluidly between economic messaging, immigration, crime and endorsements.
Before Trump took the stage, Senate leader Berger addressed the crowd, urging enthusiastic support.
“Isn’t it great to have President Trump back?” Berger asked.
When the response wasn’t loud enough, Berger asked again.
“President Trump is working overtime to deliver for the hard-working Americans who suffered under Biden inflation and the other failed far-left policies,” Berger said. “Eleven months ago, President Trump returned to the Oval Office and immediately started cleaning up the messes that Joe Biden had created.”
Trump spoke repeatedly about the economy, declaring a turnaround under his administration.
“One year ago, our country was dead, now we are the hottest country of anywhere in the world,” he said. “Since my inauguration, we’ve created more than 53,000 North Carolina jobs and 8,000 North Carolina construction jobs.”
Trump blamed Democrats for inflation and rising prices, saying they were responsible for economic hardship nationwide.
“They’re the ones, of course, that caused the highest inflation in the history of our country, which led to the highest prices in the history of our country,” Trump said. “I inherited the mess.”
He later joked about media fact-checking of that claim, referencing similar remarks he made earlier in the week.
He told the crowd he shouldn’t say in the history of the country — “It’s not the worst in history, it’s the worst in 48 years.”
Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer also spoke, focusing on manufacturing and labor policy in North Carolina.
“It’s fitting that we’re here in the heart of America’s advanced manufacturing,” Chavez-DeRemer said. “President Trump has been laser focused on building the golden age of the American industry.”
She criticized previous trade policies and emphasized a worker-first agenda.
“For too long, Washington politicians let critical sectors of our economy, the building blocks of our great nation, get ripped apart by cheap foreign labor,” Chavez-DeRemer said. “But not anymore, not under the president of the American worker. As your Secretary of Labor, I’m working with President Trump to make sure American jobs go to American workers first.”
Worth noting, the inflation rate is around 2.7% over the 12 months ending in November 2025, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics — so that’s good news.
Trump continued to link economic concerns to crime and immigration, attacking Democratic US Senate candidate Roy Cooper.
“He’s radical left, you don’t want him. He doesn’t represent you. Look at the crime — look at what’s going on with all the crime here,” Trump said. “You gotta get Michael Whatley. It’s gonna be so important, he was so great.”
Whatley, the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, was the centerpiece of Trump’s visit. Trump repeatedly emphasized his support, reminding the crowd of Whatley’s role in party leadership.
“You’ve got to get Michael Whatley,” Trump said. “It’s going to be so important. He was so great. Don’t forget I took Michael Whatley and put him as the head of the party because he was so great. We won this thing all three times, and it was like a rock.”
Whatley returned the praise when he took the stage, framing Trump as a transformational leader.
“Donald Trump, right now, is serving as the most transformational president in our lifetime and President Trump, my pledge to you is this,” Whatley said. “When I win this seat, when I am the next senator from North Carolina, I am going to be a fighter every day for the state.”
Trump also addressed crime in North Carolina, referencing violent incidents including the fatal stabbing of a Ukrainian immigrant on a Charlotte bus earlier this month, though he did not mention the victim by name. He blamed Democratic leaders for policies he said contributed to public safety failures, including Cooper. Trump told the crowd that Democrats were responsible for rising crime rates, tying the issue back to immigration and criminal justice reform.
Trump announced additional policy initiatives, including a $1,776 bonus for military personnel and his plan to reduce prescription drug prices through a program called TrumpRX, which allows patients to purchase pharmaceuticals directly from manufacturers without insurance.
Trump painted a sweeping picture of North Carolina’s geography and economy as he emphasized growth under his administration.
“From the skyscrapers of Charlotte, to the rolling hills of Asheville, from the sand dunes of Kitty Hawk to the streets of Chapel Hill and from the factories of Hickory to the small towns and family farms across the beautiful countryside in North Carolina, we are bringing prosperity, opportunity and pride surging back to your incredible home,” Trump said.
Before leaving the stage, Trump closed with a familiar rallying message.
“Every single day of this administration, we will keep on working for the hard-working citizens of America,” Trump said. “We will fight, fight, fight. We will win, win, win and with your help, we will make America powerful again. We will make America wealthy again. We will make America healthy again. We will make America strong again. We will make America proud again. We will make America safe again. And we will make America great again.”