President Trump spoke at a Saturday evening rally in Clarksville, Tennessee, while working to boost Republican candidates ahead of the midterm elections. Early in his remarks, he told the crowd, “I could say the stupidest things and you’d clap,” according to Forbes. Supporters answered with laughter and applause, after which Trump added, “It’s true.”
He quickly followed the line by distinguishing those remarks from actual policy positions. Trump explained, “but we don’t say the stupidest things, we say things of common sense. We say things that make sense, and probably are mostly conservative. But it’s not really conservative, it’s the things of common sense.”
The president then described the topics he considers common sense. He listed the wish “to have a border, we want to have low taxes, we want to have a great military. We want to have, you know, all of the different things. It’s like seven, eight, ten, five, four–it’s just things that are common sense.”
Remarks on Republican leadership and a brief disruption during the Tennessee stop
In the same speech, Trump slipped up and stated, “If Republicans get in power, you’re going to end up in a depression. These people are incompetent.” He appears to have mistakenly said “Republicans” instead of “Democrats” when urging voters to make the right choice in the midterms.
At least one protester briefly interrupted the Clarksville event. Trump referred to the individual as a “wacko.” The disruption was handled on-site, with no further reported incidents at that time.
The Tennessee appearance came two days after a rally in Texas. During the earlier Texas event, Trump’s remarks were interrupted nearly a dozen times. One of those interruptions involved a physical confrontation between a protester and some of the president’s supporters.
No arrests took place in Texas. Local police escorted the protesters out of the arena after the interruptions.
Trump’s visit to Tennessee was focused on supporting two statewide Republicans. Marsha Blackburn is seeking re-election to the Senate, while Bill Hagerty is running for governor. The president noted that both appeared to be performing well in their races.
He joked about the location by asking, “What am I doing in Tennessee?” Trump then said it can still be worthwhile to visit places where he is not required to campaign. He explained, “But…you know sometimes it’s nice to go to a place where you don’t have to be, but you are there to say thank you to the great people that elected you three separate times.”
In those comments, he repeated his claim of having won the 2020 election. Trump closed the thought by adding, “You know, for me it’s easy because there is such love in these rooms.” The remarks formed part of his broader effort to thank supporters while encouraging votes for Blackburn and Hagerty.
Published: Oct 11, 2026 09:15 am