AP Photo/Alex Brandon
- Donald Trump called for a "quantum leap" in the American standard of living on Friday.
- He laid out campaign proposals for new 'freedom cities' and investment in flying cars.
- Trump said the US had "lost its boldness," but under his leadership, it would be "back in a very big way."
Former president and 2024 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump laid out futuristic urban development proposals on Friday, calling for a "quantum leap" in the American standard of living.
In the typical fashion of the former real estate developer and television star, his proposals were out of the norm of traditional presidential plans. In a video released on Truth Social, Trump called for investment in vertical take-off and landing vehicles — flying cars, in layman's terms — as well as a national contest to design and create ten new "freedom cities" to be built from scratch on government-owned land.
"Just as the United States led the automotive revolution in the last century, I want to ensure that America — not China — leads this revolution in air mobility," Trump, wearing his trademark red tie and flanked by two US flags, said in the video.
"These breakthroughs can transform commerce, bring a giant infusion of wealth into rural America, and connect families and our country in new ways."
Trump added that the US had recently "lost its boldness" but assured that "under my leadership, we will get it back in a very big way. If you look at just three years ago, what we were doing was unthinkable, how good it was, how great it was for our country."
The Trump campaign said that ten cities the size of Washington, DC, could be built on just 0.06% of "empty" federal land, according to a press release entitled "Agenda47" which would give American families "a new opportunity for home ownership and the American Dream."
Trump also said he would encourage a "baby boom" if elected president in the next term, giving money to new parents called "baby bonuses."
The four-minute video was light on details of how the visionary plan would come to fruition, and Trump campaign advisers conceded the new set of plans was unusual, according to reporting by Politico.
They added, however, that Trump was not the first American president to make grand propositions — highlighting Abraham Lincoln's campaign for the transcontinental railroad and Teddy Roosevelt's national park service.
Investment in vertical take-off and landing vehicles is not as outlandish as it may seem. They are in the early stages of development but are not expected to be available soon.
The latest plan for Trump's 2024 campaign came one day before he is set to address the Conservative Political Action Conference, a four-day gathering for Republican officials and right-wing activists at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland.
Correction, February 5, 2023: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that CPAC was held in Washington, DC. It took place in National Harbor, Maryland.