Trump called Pratt Industries’ decision to open in Auglaize County a victory for the state.
The Australian-owned facility is a recycled paper mill that the president called “cutting-edge stuff” during a tour of the plant.
Credit: DaytonDailyNews
Trump toured the site with Pratt Industries global chairman Anthony Pratt who said the paper mill in is the company’s ”largest-ever investment.”
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison was also on the tour.
“That’s really some equipment,” President Trump said.
Morrison said “it’s great to be here in Wapakoneta.” He said “it’s a bit of Australia right here in Ohio.”
On the way from the Lima Airport to Wapakoneta, several dozen people could be seen on the lawn of the Neil Armstrong Museum in Wapakoneta waving as the motorcade passed.
Armstrong, the first man on the moon, is from Wapakoneta.
Several people were also waving from the roof of a nearby bowling alley.
U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Urbana, and U.S. Sen. Rob Portman and his wife Jane welcomed the president at the airport.
Trump joked about how he would do wrestling Jim Jordan, a former state champion. “I’m bigger than he is,” President Trump said.
A crowd of about 50 welcomed the president at the airport.
Sunday’s visit was Trump’s 12th visit to Ohio during his presidency. He was in Dayton last month to visit victims of the mass shooting in Dayton’s Oregon District.
In a tweet posted just before the event, Ohio Democrats criticized the president’s jobs record.
"In 2017, @realDonaldTrump said, "Those jobs [that] have left Ohio, they're coming back. They're all coming back. Don't move, don't sell your house." Then, when he was asked about @GM closing their Lordstown plant, Trump said, "It doesn't really matter," the tweet said.
It is a packed house already! @realDonaldTrump is scheduled to speak at @PrattIndustries in Wapakoneta at 5:30 p.m. pic.twitter.com/Y0lUaODOki
— Molly Koweek (@MKoweekWHIO) September 22, 2019
President Trump ended his day in New York as he readies for events this coming week at the U.N. General Assembly.
Trump in Texas earlier Sunday
Deafening drums marked the entrance of President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minster Narendra Modi as they clasped hands and walked across the stage in a packed Texas stadium Sunday, sending a message of unity between the world's two largest democracies despite trade tensions.
Instead of dwelling on trade, Trump highlighted the growth of U.S. exports to India, the billions of dollars India is spending on U.S.-made defense equipment and joint military exercises with New Delhi.
"India has never invested in the United States like it is doing today," Trump said, adding that "we're doing the same thing in India."
The president also discussed border security, an important campaign issue for Texas, which shares a border with Mexico.
"We are taking unprecedented action to secure our southern border and stop illegal immigration," Trump said.
About 50,000 Indian Americans attended the "Howdy Modi!" rally in Houston, where the crowd chanted "Modi! Modi! Modi!" as he took the stage to introduce Trump as "my friend, a friend of India, a great American president."
Modi even used Trump's political slogan to say the president had a strong resolve to "make America great again."
"When I met him for the first time, he said to me 'India has a true friend in the White House,'" Modi said. "Mr. President, this morning in Houston, you can hear the heartbeat of this great partnership in this celebration of the world's two largest democracies."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.