President Donald Trump piled on his political rivals Wednesday during a rally in Phoenix — and in typical Trump style, he might have successfully stolen the show.
Only a state away, Democrats in Nevada debated that they’re the right choice to challenge Trump in the November election.
As Democrats watched billionaire and former New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg make his debut on the debate stage ahead of Nevada’s party caucuses on Saturday, Trump jumped into the fray.
Bloomberg was an early target for Democratic rivals — and Trump joined in from a state away.
“Now they have a new member of the crew, mini Mike,” Trump said. “‘No boxes,’ we call him ‘no boxes.'”
“I hear he’s getting pounded tonight — you know he’s in a debate,” Trump said. “I hear that they’re pounding. He spent $500 million so far and I think he has 15 points.
“Hey fake news, how many points does he have, 15?” he questioned, referring to a CNN news crew. “They won’t tell you the truth.”
Earlier in the day, Trump took a swipe at Bloomberg on social media. Bloomberg was criticized in 2016 for saying at Oxford University, “I could teach anybody, even people in this room, no offense intended, to be a farmer.” The former New York mayor continued: “It’s a process. You dig a hole, you put a seed in, you put dirt on top, add water, up comes the corn.”
“Mini Mike hates the farmer,” Trump said. “Never mind, I don’t think he’s going to be the candidate anyway, to be honest with you.”
He gleefully derided Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren as “Pocahontas” for her false claims of Native American heritage and claimed her presidential campaign had stalled. “Fortunately she self-destructed anyway,” Trump said.
Many pundits claimed that Warren, in part for her fierce takedown of Bloomberg, won the debate. The hashtag #PresidentElizabethWarren was trending on Twitter following the debate.
But Trump said he is feeling confident no matter the opponent.
“We don’t care who the hell it is,” he said. “We’re going to win.”
Arizona is a 2020 battleground state — Democrats say that with a little luck, the state could be in play.
The state is home to Republican Sen. Martha McSally, who stood by the president during the Senate’s impeachment trial and at his political rally. In her remarks, McSally mentioned her Democratic opponent Mark Kelly, who has said he’d back Sen. Bernie Sanders if he is the party’s nominee.
“Mark Kelly is flying on Bernie Sanders’ wing and I’m flying on your wing, President Trump,” she said.
Trump was on stage for more than an hour and 20 minutes. Before he arrived at Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, a small crowd of protesters attempted to disrupt the event. A large contingent of illegal immigration advocates waved signs declaring “Dump Trump” and “Power to the people!”
The president’s four-day, four-state trip features big-dollar fundraisers, back-to-back-to-back campaign rallies and a sprinkling of official presidential events. It’s an unusually long domestic trip for Trump, who prefers to sleep in his own bed.
Next best: He’s sleeping each night at his own hotel just off the Las Vegas Strip and making day trips to California, Arizona, and Colorado. On Thursday, Trump will host a rally in Colorado Springs for another Republican, Sen. Cory Gardner.
On Friday, the eve of the Democratic Nevada caucuses, Trump will hold a rally in its capital city: Las Vegas.
The Associated Press contributed to this article