via flickr/cornstalker
Air Force One touched down in St. Louis this afternoon, marking President Donald Trump's third presidential visit to the Gateway City.
Trump flew in from Los Angeles to take a tour of Boeing, to have a roundtable discussion about tax cuts and tax reform, and to show his support for Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley in the senatorial race with incumbent Claire McCaskill.
Trump arrived at St. Louis Lambert International Airport around 2:30 p.m. and was greeted by Hawley and a band of supporters.
His motorcade then made its way to Boeing, where Trump toured the facilities.
Sitting alongside leaders of Missouri-based companies, he discussed the benefits of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 on the state's businesses. All companies involved in the discussion have announced wage increases, bonuses, and other investments since the passage of the tax reform act, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
"The state of Missouri was very great to me," Trump said in his opening remarks. "And I think Josh [Hawley] is doing a fantastic job... It's wonderful to be back in this great state and push all of these historic tax cuts. This is one of the first places I announced that we'd be asking for massive tax cuts."
Business leaders then took turns praising the tax relief. Hawthorn Bank chief executive officer David Turner, for example, announced that its 348 employees received up to $1,000 bonuses because of the reform. Boeing employee Hazel Jean Mims said she is seeing more take-home pay, which she's investing in her daughter's college education.
Following his time at Boeing, Trump traveled to a fundraising event for Hawley at the Frontenac Hilton Hotel, where a group of protesters awaited Trump outside the hotel. One protester held a sign that read, "17 dead, the GOP lied to survivors (kids)."
Trump's visit falls on National Walkout Day, created in the wake of the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, in which 17 people were killed one month ago. Students around the country, including St. Louis, walked out of their classrooms in protest of gun violence.
