PHOENIX—President Donald Trump predicted a Republican sweep in November’s midterms and pledged to press ahead with his “America First” agenda amid chants of “USA! USA!” during a rally in Phoenix on April 17.
“Together, we’re making America great again, and this November, we’re going to win the midterms. We’re going to win—we’re going to win like never before,” Trump said as the keynote speaker.
Sponsored by conservative student organization Turning Point USA (TPUSA), the rally drew more than 3,000 supporters to Dream City Church in Phoenix to build momentum and expand voter rolls ahead of the 2026 midterms.
The group’s “Build the Red Wall” strategy seeks Republican majorities in Congress by concentrating efforts in key battleground states, including Arizona, Nevada, and New Hampshire.
Trump remembered Charlie Kirk, TPUSA’s late founder, as a friend and supporter, and said the organization’s backing helped him secure a second term in the 2024 election.
“In 2024, Turning Points Grassroots Army helped us win Arizona in an absolute landslide. We won all seven swing states. We won the electoral college. We won the popular vote by millions of votes,” he said.
Kirk was killed by an assassin’s bullet on Sept. 10, 2025, while speaking before a large audience at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. His widow, Erika Kirk, was appointed his successor as CEO of TPUSA.
“His voice is not silenced, it’s roaring back louder than ever before,” Trump said. “His message is unstoppable. His movement is unforgettable,” he said.
“He was such a great friend of mine. We’d speak all the time, about politics, God—we talked about anything you can talk about.”
Erika Kirk was among the speakers, along with Arizona Congressman Andy Biggs, a Republican candidate for Arizona governor, and Congressmen Eli Crane, Abe Hamadeh, Paul Gosar, and Juan Ciscomani.
Trump stressed the importance of the midterms as a choice between making America great again or returning to what he called the failed policies of Democrats.
“Democrats want to drag America down, destroy our country, put it into crime, poverty, and squalor—really, the squalor of a third world nation,” Trump said.
“We would have been—if I didn’t win this election—in a short period of time, we would have been a third-world nation.
Trump said his administration secured negotiations with the Iranian regime to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping chokepoint, after nearly two months of conflict that has culminated in a U.S. naval blockade.
“Iran has just announced that the Strait of Hormuz is fully open and ready for business. And the naval blockade with the greatest navy in the world from the greatest military the world has ever seen,” Trump said.
He added: “We will remain in full force and effect as it pertains to Iran until such time as our transaction with Iran is 100 percent complete and fully signed.
“And this process is getting along well, but who knows, who knows with anyone, but who knows with Iran in particular. This process should go very quickly and that most of the points are already negotiated and agreed to.”
“The USA will get all nuclear dust. Do you know what the nuclear dust is? That was that white powdery substance created by our B-2 bombers, those great B-2 bombers,” the president told the gathering in Phoenix.
“Iran, with the help of the USA, has removed or is removing all of the sea mines. And most importantly, it never agreed, and you’ll understand, they will never have a nuclear weapon.”
Trump suggested that NATO countries had not adequately supported the United States during the war effort, characterizing a recent offer of assistance as insufficient and coming too late.
“I received a call from NATO asking if we would like some help. I told them I would have liked your help two months ago, but now I really don’t want your help anymore. But actually, we never needed them. They needed us. They need us. They need us so badly,” Trump said.
He said the agreement with Iran involves no payment and is unrelated to recent developments in Lebanon, where a ceasefire with Israel is now in place.
Trump also said the United States will continue coordinating with Lebanon regarding Iran-backed Hezbollah, which is designated as a terrorist organization.
He added that including Iran and Lebanon would raise the total to 10 conflicts he claims to have helped resolve, saying the efforts have saved “many millions of lives.”
“We are not ashamed of American might. And we do not hesitate to defend the American people, which is what we’ve been doing for the last two months, because Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon,” the president said.
Several rally-goers told The Epoch Times the president’s comments resonated with them as a plan of action for national recovery.
“I just like to see from his perspective what’s going on in Iran,” said Calan Philips, 18, from Cave Creek, Arizona. “I think it’s always cool just to see the president in person, so I’m excited for that.”
Starting in December, the U.S. Selective Service System will automatically register eligible men ages 18–25 for the draft using federal data, replacing the current self-registration system under the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act.
Philips said he is “fine” with the change.
“If the country needs me, then the country needs me,” he said.
“It’s my duty as an American to serve my country. You know, this country’s done so much for me, and it’s been a blessing to be here. If I get drafted, I get drafted.”
Margaret Branson, visiting Arizona from Ireland, said it was refreshing to see the president up close.
“It’s different when you’re watching it from TV,” Branson told The Epoch Times.
“But when you’re here in real life, you really get to see that he’s not talking off the script.
“We forget what he’s done. We need to sit back and be thankful,” she told The Epoch Times.
She added that if Arizona Republicans fail to reclaim the House, Senate, and governor’s office, “We will probably be like Minnesota and California,” which she described as Democratic strongholds.
Outside the rally, protesters opposed to the president’s visit shouted at attendees and held signs filled with slogans and epithets, while police stood nearby.