Motorcades, Secret Service and red, white and blue regalia descended on Las Vegas this week, as US President Donald Trump was in town to tout the success of his federal tax reforms, which were largely inspired by Sin City, and to endorse Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo as he seeks reelection in November.
Trump, in his usual way, spent the majority of his hour-long speech at Red Rock Casino on Wednesday afternoon meandering from topic to topic, touching on everything from his landmark “no tax on tips” provision to the Iran war, his predecessor Joe Biden and much else. The 45th and 47th US president wasted no opportunity to throw vitriol toward Democrats, whom he referred to as “Dumocrats”, despite the fact that five of Nevada’s six current Congressional members are Democrats.
“I’ve been fighting for the people of Nevada like no president ever has before,” he said, while describing Nevada as a “great state” where “thousands of proud, hardworking American patriots are just doing their thing”.
Nevada’s economic reliance on tourism and hospitality gives it the highest concentration of tipped workers in the US. Trump’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill” from last July included a provision that allows eligible workers to deduct up to $25,000 in tipped income from their federal taxes. Nevada has seen strong job growth in the last year, and the state finished the most recent tax filing season with the fourth-highest average refund in the country, per Upgraded Points.
Trump won Nevada in the 2024 presidential election by a 50%-47% margin, although he lost in Clark County, which includes Las Vegas, by the same margin to Democratic candidate Kamala Harris.
“No tax on tips didn’t hurt,” he said of his victory in the Silver State two years ago.
Taxes down, tourism down?
Trump first floated the idea for no tax on tips at a Las Vegas campaign rally in June 2024. He said on Wednesday he was inspired by a “beautiful” waitress at his Trump International Las Vegas hotel – “what can I say, she was beautiful” – who bemoaned her tax bill to him while he was having dinner there one evening.
“She was my consultant… You hire these people, you pay ’em millions of dollars, they don’t come up with crap,” Trump joked. “Takes a waitress from Las Vegas to give us some good ideas.”
But while the tax deduction has offered some financial reprieve to Las Vegas casino workers, some have asserted that Trump’s foreign relations and economic policies have also contributed to a long-running tourism drop for the nation’s gambling capital. The deduction is also temporary, expiring in 2028, and married couples must split the $25,000 cap.
According to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, visitation to the city fell 7.5% in 2025, and air traffic to Harry Reid International Airport declined 6%. So far in 2026, visitation has been negative in three of six reported months and air traffic is down a further 7%.
Historically, Canada has been a top feeder market to Las Vegas, but traffic from top airlines Air Canada and WestJet are down 16% and 23% year-to-date, respectively. LVCVA CEO Steve Hill and other officials have travelled to Canada directly in efforts to assuage concerns, and some casinos have run Canadian-centred deals to try and coax travellers back.
“Canada’s nasty, they are, they’re nasty,” Trump said on Wednesday. “I love the people but they’re nasty, nasty leadership.”
Other topics Trump touched on during his remarks include:
Tariffs
The president spent much time celebrating increased tariffs, which have been a staple of his economic policy so far in his second term. Starting last April with his “Liberation Day” announcements, Trump has sharply raised tariffs on dozens of the country’s biggest trade partners, including Canada, Mexico, the UK, the EU and China.
“The tariffs have made us rich,” Trump told the crowd at Red Rock.
Those first Liberation Day tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act were subsequently struck down by the US Supreme Court in February, and the government has refunded $100 billion worth of revenue they generated. Since then, Trump has moved to re-up tariff rates again under different authorities, which are again facing legal challenges.
For the gaming industry, slot makers and other suppliers have had to grapple with rising costs and constant uncertainty. According to the Tax Foundation, a Washington DC-based think tank, increased tariffs led to an average tax increase of $1,000 per US household in 2025, and that figure is at $900 so far in 2026. US tariff rates have changed more than 50 times since Trump’s second term, the foundation said.
“Instead of saying, ‘We’ve been doing it this way for 10 years, let’s keep doing it’, everybody’s trying to be a little bit more efficient and a little bit more dynamic, realising they’re going to encounter some uncertainty or some changes or some disruptions,” Daron Dorsey, CEO of the Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers, told iGB in April.
Las Vegas magnates
Several high-profile Las Vegas figures were in attendance, including Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta, Phil Ruffin and Dana White.
“What a beautiful family, aren’t they loaded? They’re loaded,” Trump said of the Fertittas, who serve as chairman and vice chairman of Red Rock Resorts. “They own this hotel, you know. They own this beautiful hotel, which I’m sure is doing well cause everything they have does well.”
Red Rock has seen record performance over the last two years as the Las Vegas locals market has surged. Shares are up 10% over the last year, although in Q2 the company’s Las Vegas revenue and adjusted EBITDA fell 2% and 5% year-over-year. Frank and Lorenzo’s cousin, Tilman Fertitta, recently acquired Caesars Entertainment in a $17.6 billion deal, and he also serves in Trump’s administration as ambassador to Italy and San Marino.
With regard to Ruffin, Trump called him “one of the greatest businessmen in the world” and “a money machine”. Ruffin owns Circus Circus, Treasure Island, the Las Vegas Festival Grounds and 50% of Trump’s Las Vegas hotel. Regarding Ruffin’s wife, Ukrainian model Oleksandra Nikolayenko, Trump said: “I’m more impressed by her.” The couple were married at Mar-a-Lago in 2008, with Trump serving as best man.
White introduced the commander-in-chief at the event, two months after the UFC held a fight card on the White House lawn. While White is supportive of Trump and no tax on tips, he also publicly asked the president to rescind the controversial 90% gambling loss deduction included in the OBBB, which Trump did not mention.
“Dana had the most successful fight in history the other night, at the White House, we had the White House as a little backdrop, and they were some of the greatest fights anyone’s ever seen,” Trump said.
Nevada governor race
Lombardo enjoyed a hearty endorsement from Trump for reelection in a race that many feel could be among the closest in the nation in November. “Will you please win by a big number?”, the president joked.
Nevada is considered a swing state, meaning it can flip back and forth from Republican and Democrat, and Lombardo is facing a big challenge from Democratic candidate and current Attorney General Aaron Ford. Ford is currently a 55% favourite to win on Kalshi and a 52% favourite on Polymarket.
Speaking of prediction markets, Ford is currently leading the state’s legal fight against the controversial exchanges, which Nevada views as an existential threat to its gambling throne. Of all the states battling prediction markets in court, Nevada is arguably faring the best – the state has managed to shut down numerous platforms within its borders, including Kalshi, Polymarket, Robinhood, Coinbase and Crypto.com. That success could serve as a feather in Ford’s cap later this year.
Lombardo, who spoke before and during Trump’s speech, had to admonish a crowd member for booing during a moment of silence for Austin Abdelnabi, a local police officer who died in the line of duty this week. The jeers seemed to be in response to Abdelnabi’s last name.
“No, no, we’re not booing him. He’s the officer that passed away here recently,” Lombardo said.
Jess Marquez
Jess has covered the global gaming industry since 2022. A native of Reno, Nevada, he’d like to note that it’s Ne-va-da, not Ne-VAH-da.
Original article: https://igamingbusiness.com/casino/trump-las-vegas-trip/
