Trump visits Ohio and Kentucky to downplay war's effect on economy and target a top GOP antagonist [View all]

Source: AP

Updated 6:43 AM EDT, March 11, 2026


WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump plans to visit Ohio and Kentucky on Wednesday to argue that his policies can steady an economy facing shock waves from the war on Iran and to try to defeat one of the few congressional Republicans who has dared to defy him.

In Cincinnati, the Republican president is touring Thermo Fisher Scientific, a pharmaceutical company. There, he’ll tout efforts to lower prescription drug prices, a key part of his attempts to show his administration is focused on making the cost of living more affordable for many Americans ahead of November’s midterm elections.

After that, Trump will visit a logistics packing facility in nearby Hebron, Kentucky, part of the district of Rep. Thomas Massie. Trump is backing a primary challenger to Massie.

The trip presents a test of Trump’s ability to cleanse his party of those who oppose him but also to try to stay on an economic message increasingly strained by the military action launched by the U.S. and Israel against Iran. He’ll be “talking about the economy, which is, of course, the utmost importance to him,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/trump-economy-oil-iran-massie-kentucky-ohio-a4dfc8bcdb32951495bf1c9bbda54ed8