Trending Now - Trump Strays From Economic Focus in New York Speech
WHO:
AP News - Trump called Lawler “fantastic” and referred to him as a “pain in the ass” for his persistence on expanding the SALT deduction.
AP News - Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, the Trump-backed Republican candidate for New York governor, appeared with Trump at the event.
AP News - President Donald Trump
AP News - Republican Rep. Mike Lawler
AP News - Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman
AP News - Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris
AP News - Riya Vashi, spokesperson for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
AP News - Richard Hudson, National Republican Congressional Committee chairman
WHAT:
AP News - Trump stated that the tax law he signed last year expanded the SALT deduction to $40,000 from $10,000.
AP News - Lawler reported that his constituents were seeing refund checks ranging from $5,000 to $20,000.
AP News - Trump delivered a speech that was supposed to focus on the economy but veered off-topic to discuss various issues including voter identification and crime.
AP News - Trump referred to the opposition party as “Dumocrats.”
AP News - Trump claimed to have cut taxes for workers, families, and small businesses, stating, “I cut your taxes, cut the taxes on workers, families, small business, who are the soul of this state.”
AP News - Trump highlighted that the tax law he signed last year quadrupled the deduction for state and local taxes.
AP News - Lawler stated that more than 90% of people in his district could fully deduct their state and local taxes.
AP News - Trump’s approval rating on the economy was reported to be about one-third of U.S. adults.
AP News - The average tax refund for New Yorkers was raised to more than $3,800.
AP News - Lawler mentioned that constituents were seeing refund checks ranging from $5,000 to $20,000.
WHERE:
AP News - The speech took place at Rockland Community College in Suffern, New York.
AP News - Lawler represents a congressional district in New York.
WHEN:
AP News - The general election is scheduled for November.
AP News - The Democratic primary is scheduled for June 23.
WHY:
AP News - Lawler aims to energize Republican voters by embracing Trump, as he represents a district that was won by Kamala Harris in 2024.
AP News - Trump aimed to promote the tax law he signed and bolster support for Lawler in a competitive House race.
AP News - Lawler embraced Trump to energize Republican voters in his district.
HOW:
AP News - The event was described as an official White House event, not a campaign rally.
AP News - Trump traveled to the Hudson Valley area to appear with Lawler for the event.
AP News - More than 5,000 people registered to attend the event within the first 12 hours of sign-up availability.
(UPDATED May 23, 2026 07:45 UTC)
Trump praised Lawler as “fantastic” while also calling him a “pain in the ass” for his efforts to expand the SALT deduction during an official White House event. He highlighted that the tax law he signed last year increased the SALT deduction limit to $40,000, which has led to constituents receiving refund checks between $5,000 and $20,000. Lawler, who is backed by Trump in his bid for New York governor, is working to energize Republican voters ahead of the general election scheduled for November.
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(UPDATED May 23, 2026 04:14 UTC)
President Trump delivered a speech at Rockland Community College in Suffern, New York, where he intended to focus on the economy but instead discussed a range of topics, including voter identification and crime, while referring to the opposition as “Dumocrats.” He highlighted his tax cuts for workers, families, and small businesses, claiming that the tax law he signed last year quadrupled the deduction for state and local taxes, which Republican Rep. Mike Lawler noted allowed over 90% of his constituents to fully deduct those taxes. Lawler is looking to energize Republican voters ahead of the upcoming Democratic primary on June 23, and more than 5,000 people registered to attend the event within the first 12 hours of sign-up availability.