Trump boosts Mike Collins in Georgia as Ossoff cash gap looms
Trump used a Marietta rally to promote GOP Senate nominee Mike Collins while spotlighting Trump Accounts, Iran and election legislation.
By Deshawn Carter · Sports Writer
3 min read
President Donald Trump put the spotlight on Georgia’s Senate race Wednesday, urging a packed gym crowd in Marietta to back Republican Rep. Mike Collins against Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff, NBC News reported.
Speaking at Wheeler High School, Trump called Collins one of the most “highly respected” members of Congress and mocked Ossoff by comparing him to Pee-wee Herman.
“You have to vote for Mike because he is running against Pee-wee Herman,” Trump told the crowd, according to NBC News. “He will bring a lot of action back to your state … vote for Mike.”
Collins was not at the event because of votes in Washington, NBC News reported.
A pricey Senate fight
The Georgia contest is one of the closely watched Senate races of the cycle, and Republicans are starting it with a serious money problem.
Ossoff has raised $77 million this election cycle, according to NBC News. Collins has raised $6.5 million to date, and Federal Election Commission figures showed him with about $2 million on hand as of June 30, compared with Ossoff’s $42 million.
Trump stayed out of the Republican Senate primary for much of the fight, while several well-funded GOP candidates battled for his support. NBC News reported that Trump endorsed Collins only days before the June primary runoff, when Collins already appeared to be in a strong position to win the nomination.
The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter rates the seat as “leans Democratic,” while the race remains competitive. Democrats are defending Georgia as they seek a net gain of four seats to take the Senate majority, NBC News reported.
The party is also targeting Maine, Texas, Iowa, Alaska and Ohio, while defending open Democratic-held seats in Michigan and New Hampshire.
Trump Accounts take center stage
The main theme of Trump’s event was education, especially the new Trump Accounts program, NBC News reported. The accounts offer tax-advantaged investing for Americans under 18, with the federal government putting $1,000 into accounts for babies born from 2025 through 2028.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon praised the program before Trump took the stage.
“For too long, many have felt the American dream is slipping into the past — not any more,” McMahon said, according to NBC News. “Under President Trump’s leadership, we are opening every possible pathway to pursue that dream again.”
Trump said “money is pouring in” to the accounts, then brought up Republican businessman Rick Jackson, his endorsed candidate for governor. Jackson said that if elected, he would ask Georgia lawmakers to match the federal government’s $1,000 contribution for participating families, NBC News reported.
Jackson also said he would pay the matching contributions himself if lawmakers did not approve the plan.
Iran, prices and voting rules
Speakers also addressed the war in Iran. NBC News reported that Trump initially described the conflict, which began in February, as a short incursion. Nearly six months later, 18 service members have been killed, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Congress the war has cost $37.5 billion.
The Defense Department is seeking $67 billion in supplemental funding for the war effort, according to NBC News.
U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach drew applause when he said Trump “is going to make sure Iran never has a nuclear weapon,” NBC News reported.
The war has added pressure at home through fuel costs. NBC News reported that crude oil recently rose above $95 per barrel, its highest level in almost six weeks, after prices had stabilized following news of an April ceasefire and then climbed again when bombing resumed.
Trump also pressed Senate Republicans over his SAVE America Act, a proposal that would require proof of U.S. citizenship for federal voter registration, sharply restrict mail voting and require states to remove noncitizens from voter rolls, NBC News reported.
Senate Republicans have warned that the bill lacks the 60 votes needed to beat a filibuster. Trump kept pushing Wednesday, saying, “The Senate, what they are doing is just not right. We are not going to take this any longer.”
This story draws on original reporting from NBC News.