President Trump Addresses World Leaders At The World Economic Summit In Davos [FULL VIDEO]

President Donald Trump delivered a message calling for “peace and prosperity” while trumpeting his “America First” policy to the worlds political and economic leaders attending the World Economic Summit in Davos, Switzerland.

President Trump arrived in Davos early Thursday morning by helicopter with an entourage that included Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who captured the President’s journey at the summit in a series of photos she posted to Twitter.

President Trump is the first president to attend the World Economic Summit since Bill Clinton in the 1990’s. He met with several world leaders including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and British Prime Minister Theresa May.

He also spoke with the newly elected chairman of the African Union, Rwandan President Paul Kagame and the President of Switzerland and the host of the summit, Alain Berset.

President Trump delivered his speech on January 26, 2018 to forum attendees, “It’s a privilege to be here at this forum an business and science diplomacy and people from world affairs gathered for many, many years to discuss how we can advance prosperity and peace,” the president began.

For the event, President Trump used a much softer tone and stuck to the script as he laid down his hopes for the future.

“Like all nations represented at this great forum, America hopes for a future which everyone can prosper and every child can grow up free from violence, poverty and fear,” Trump said. “We’re lifting up forgotten communities, creating exciting new opportunities, and helping every American find their path to the American dream. The dream of a great job, a safe home and a better life for their children.”

During the election Trump campaigned heavily on restoring American wealth and economic dominance, deregulating burdensome regulations from businesses, as well as renegotiating trade deals he deemed unfair towards U.S. workers. During the forum in Davos the president double-downed on these promises.

In a pitch to businesses looking to open shop in the United States, Trump told attendees in his speech that his administration has “succeeded beyond our highest expectations.”

The President also talked about unfair trade deals hurting the country, “as the United States pursues domestic reforms to unleash jobs and growth, we are also working to reform the international trading system. We cannot have free and open trade if some countries exploit the system at the expense of others.”

Trump has recently been threatening to pull out of the North American Free Trade Agreement commonly referred to as NAFTA between the U.S., Canada and Mexico and has also decided to pull out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), an agreement between 11 member nations including Canada, Mexico, Australia, China and Japan.

“We support free trade but it needs to be fair and it needs to be reciprocal because in the end unfair trade undermines us all,” said Trump.

“These and other predatory behaviors are distorting the global markets and harming businesses and workers not just in the U.S. But around the globe. Just like we expect the leaders of other countries to protect their interests, as President of the United States, I will always protect the interests of our country, our companies, and our workers. We will enforce our trade laws and restore integrity to our trading system. Only by insisting on fair and reciprocal trade can we create a system that works not just for the U.S., but for all nations.”

Despite his strong “America First” words, President Trump acknowledged that, “America first does not mean America alone,” and that when “the United States grows, so does the world.”

The president also talked about the historic efforts of his administration in providing pressure on the United Nations and North Korea, working towards a viable solution of denuclearizing the peninsula. “My administration is proud to have led the historic efforts at the United Nations Security Council and all around the world to unite all civilized nations in our campaign of maximum pressure to de-nuke the Korean peninsula.”

On the immigration issues currently plaguing the U.S. and the cause of the government shutdown last week as Republican and Democrats sought a deal on DACA, President Trump said that, “securing our immigration system as a matter of both national and economic security. We must replace our current system of extended family chain migration with a merit based system of admission that selects new arrivals based on their ability to contribute.” A system similar to that of countries like Canada and Australia which, using a points-based system, put greater emphasis on human capital than specific jobs, and resulted in lower immigrant employment rates compared to that of natives.

The Presidents speech lasted roughly 30 minutes.

Article by Eric Silverman