Donald Trump swept through the Grand Strand Saturday showcasing his signature repertoire of barbs and bluster.
The real estate tycoon, who says he’s considering a bid for the White House next year, blasted President Barack Obama, environmentalists and the Chinese – among other targets – during stops at the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce and the Horry County Republican Party Convention, where he was the keynote speaker.
“Our country is in very, very serious trouble,” he told the more than 300 convention attendees gathered inside the Ocean Bay Middle School gym. “We have a president who’s, in my opinion, incompetent.”
Trump’s earlier talk in the chamber boardroom drew just over 50 business leaders and politicians. Both event speeches featured the same themes. Trump took aim at the Chinese, whom he accused of manipulating currency, and environmentalists, some whom he alleged stifle development.
Trump blamed environmentalists’ concerns for delaying the construction of I-73, a proposed interstate that would run from Myrtle Beach to Michigan.
“China’s building islands in the middle of the sea,” he said. “You think they did an environmental impact study? They just dumped the [expletive] right there.”
During both speeches, the mogul told stories of building golf courses and other resort properties around the world. He said poor leadership is hampering U.S. economic growth.
“This country could be so rich if we knew what we were doing,” he said, “[if] people knew how to make some deals.”
Trump argued that the country has lost its competitive spirit.
“When was the last time we’ve heard … ‘We beat Mexico. We beat China. We beat somebody,’” he said. “We don’t beat anybody.”
After each talk, Trump took a few questions from the audience. When asked if he’d consider launching any projects in the Myrtle Beach area, the developer didn’t rule it out.
“Usually when I go to a place, I buy something,” he said. “If something were really good in Myrtle Beach, I would be interested.”
Trump said Myrtle Beach has a bright future but needs to improve access to the area, specifically by building I-73.
“Everything that I know about Myrtle Beach is that it’s very hard to get to,” he said, though he noted the community has some natural assets. “When you have ocean, you have a big advantage over everybody. I always say I’ve never lost money on an ocean, a lake or a river and oceans would be best.”
Some of those who attended Trump’s appearance at the chamber said they wanted to listen to his opinions on the resort industry.
“It’s always interesting hearing what he has to say,” said Steve Chapman, whose family runs the Island Vista Resort in Myrtle Beach. “He’s obviously a very successful developer and businessman, so as a person who’s in business here in this area and doing some of the similar things in hotel operations, I’m always curious to hear his take.”
At the convention, Trump’s celebrity status was a draw.
Bernard Best, an AP government student at Conway High School, posed for a selfie with the keynote speaker. As for his take on the wealthy man’s speech, the 18-year-old was noncommittal.
“I was just observing,” he said. “I’m not on either side.”
Christopher Cotton, a 19-year-old Coastal Carolina University sophomore, showed up in his National Guard uniform. When event staff saw him in the audience, he was ushered to the front so he could ask Trump a question.
“It’s nice to see somebody confronting problems or issues that haven’t been confronted yet,” the Little River native said. “I’ve seen him on TV a lot. I’ve seen that he makes a big impact.”
Should Trump run, Cotton believes his riches will insulate him from outside political interests.
“He’s able to do stuff on his own,” he said. “He looks like he can support himself without having to be persuaded by other things.”
Trump’s speech also resonated with Richard Bond, a 71-year-old Conway dentist. This was his first time watching Trump in person.
“I liked what he had to say,” he said. “Everything he had to say is what I’m concerned about.”
Over the years, Bond said he’s seen a host of politicians, including former President Ronald Reagan and potential 2016 candidate Ben Carson.
“This man relates better than any of them,” he said of Trump. “And he doesn’t need to relate. He doesn’t need the headache. … You’ve got the respect the man. I didn’t know how I felt about him until I heard what I heard today.”
Contact CHARLES D. PERRY at 626-0218 or on Twitter @TSN_CharlesPerr.
Trump highlights
The Donald doesn’t do subtle.
During two speeches on the Grand Strand Saturday, Donald Trump didn’t withhold many punches while talking about the issues that may draw him into the 2016 presidential race.
Here are some of his remarks:
On the president: “A lot of people think he’s a bad person. … But I don’t think so. I just think he’s incompetent.”
On America’s future: “Our country’s going to hell. So, you know, I say that and it’s very sad and it could be changed pretty quickly, but it’s got to start pretty soon.”
On environmentalists: “Nobody believes this, but I get awards all the time for good environment deeds. … I have a great relationship with some [environmentalists]. But a lot of these people are bad people. A lot of them are phonies. They make money off the environment. They fight you just to make fees.”
On increasing the national debt: “Twenty-four trillion. That’s like the point of no return. That’s when we become Detroit. That’s not going to be good. That’s going to be tough.”
On the cost of the ObamaCare website: “Everybody in this room has websites. We hire some kid. … People tell me all the time, ‘I have the greatest website.’ I don’t even know what the hell [that means]. I’m not into websites. I’m a little before that generation myself. … I have kids that do these things. They get $2. They’re proud of it. They spent $5 million on a website and it doesn’t even work.”
On Mexico: “They’re no friend of ours. Look at the border what they’re doing. They’re shoving people, hundreds of thousands of people, millions of people, coming across the border. And we’re not getting great people. I mean, some of them are very nice. But you don’t send the good people. You send your bad people. You send your prisoners. You send your gang members. You send the bad ones.”
On China: “I knock the hell out of China because they’re really ripping us, but I respect them. I don’t dislike them. I have a lot of friends in China.”
On Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl: “In the old days, when we were a strong country, you would kill a traitor like that.”
On Myrtle Beach: “I always liked Myrtle Beach. … I always had a great feeling for Myrtle Beach. And actually I feel that you don’t get your just due. You’re a little bit underrated. You really have a great place. You have incredible weather. You have some really good courses, not all. Because nobody has all good.”
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