WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican senators who have found themselves at odds with President Donald Trump lately will get a chance to speak with him directly when he joins them for a party luncheon at the Capitol on Wednesday.
Ahead of that gathering, senators said Tuesday they are hoping the private meeting will be focused on bringing the party together rather than airing grievances. But the timing is complicated — Trump appears to have stepped back from much of the Senate’s legislative agenda as the November midterm elections approach, instead pushing a proof-of-citizenship voting bill that currently lacks the support needed to pass.
Earlier Tuesday, the President traveled to a Mack Trucks facility in Macungie, located in the suburbs of Allentown, Pennsylvania. The visit marked his first significant public appearance outside the nation’s capital since he signed an interim agreement bringing the Iran war to a close.
The Pennsylvania stop was seen as an effort to redirect the national conversation toward the U.S. economy, as Trump looks to move past the conflict and the spike in gasoline prices it triggered — all with the midterm elections drawing nearer.
Trump took a private tour of the facility before delivering remarks that observers noted carried the energy of a reelection rally from two years ago, while also highlighting what he described as accomplishments during his second term in office.
