On the heels of major speeches on foreign policy and race relations along with a campaign-staff shakeup, Republican nominee Donald Trump told talk-radio host Michael Savage the policies of President Obama and Hillary Clinton toward Russia have prompted something "worse than a Cold War," with Moscow building up arms while the U.S. depletes its military.

"Putin is not a baby, and you look at what's going on in Russia. They're spending a fortune on their military, including nuclear and missiles all over the place, and we're not," he told listeners of "The Savage Nation" Wednesday.

Trump said Clinton "has the wrong attitude" toward Russia.

"Russia can be a tremendous help to us in knocking out ISIS and save us a lot," he said.

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"And that can happen with the proper leadership."

Trump affirmed to Savage he believes his campaign is on the rebound.

"It looks like it's a very close race from the internal polls, and Zogby came out yesterday saying we're two behind, and I think we're doing very well, Michael. It looks like we're doing very well," Trump said.

"That speech last night got a lot of good reviews, very good reviews," he added, referring to his campaign rally near the Milwaukee-area neighborhoods that suffered two nights of riots over a police shooting Saturday.

Appealing to black voters, Trump vowed in his speech in West Bend, Wisconsin, to restore law and order and help revitalize inner-city neighborhoods he said had been devastated by Democratic policies.

“I am running to offer you a much better future,” Trump said in the speech. “Crime and violence is an attack on the poor and it will never be accepted in a Trump administration."

What do YOU think? Sound off on Trump's big 'law and order' speech in Milwaukee

Savage, affirming Trump's foreign-policy speech Monday, asked the candidate to respond to Obama's handling of the military.

"The military is totally depleted, we've got old planes, we have told jet fighters, we have old equipment. It's a totally depleted military at a time when we need a very strong military," Trump told Savage.

"This is a perilous time; we're going to build up our military," he said.

Trump said Putin "doesn't want ISIS any more than we do," affirming Russia is "a natural ally" against what Savage described as "the most powerful scourge on the planet."

Free-trade 'catastrophe'

Savage asked Trump why so many Republicans support the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal.

Trump said it's because politicians, whether Democrat or Republican, "are represented by special interests."

"They are totally prone to listening to their lobbyists and their donors," he said.

"A lot of these donors are going to make a lot of money on this. They're going to make a lot of money on the other side, even if it's not good for the United States," said Trump.

He said TPP will be almost as bad as NAFTA, which, he noted, was signed by Bill Clinton.

"It has been a total catastrophe," he said of NAFTA.

"I'm going to totally renegotiate it. And if they don't renegotiate, we would end it in two seconds," Trump said.

"It's cleaned out our country. It's taken away a tremendous percentage of our manufacturing jobs."

WND reported Wednesday Trump has shaken up his campaign again amid lagging poll numbers in several key battleground states by promoting pollster Kellyanne Conway to campaign manager and appointing Stephen Bannon, the co-founder of Breitbart News, as CEO.

“I have known Steve and Kellyanne both for many years. They are extremely capable, highly qualified people who love to win and know how to win,” Trump said in a statement. “I am committed to doing whatever it takes to win this election, and ultimately become president because our country cannot afford four more years of the failed Obama-Clinton policies which have endangered our financial and physical security.”

Trump, who parted with former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski just two months ago, said in a statement that Paul Manafort, who was unofficially filling the role of campaign manager since Lewandowski’s departure, will maintain his current title and work closely with Conway and Bannon on the campaign moving forward.

Savage commended the moves, which have been characterized by supporters as "letting Trump be Trump."

Noting that Trump had been a frequent guest since 2011, Savage said Wednesday that he had thought at one time recently that Trump might not come back to the show, because the candidate's handlers had pivoted the campaign from its anti-establishment roots.

"I don't think he even knew that he was being kept away from the show," Savage said. "That's a whole separate story that is worth telling."

In an interview with Savage in July just before the Republican National Convention, Trump reassured Savage that he was not "moving to the center," as some "Savage Nation" listeners had feared, noting he had affirmed, for example, he still planned to press for building a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico.

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In the interview Wednesday, Trump again affirmed he hasn't abandoned the wall.

"You need the wall. The wall is going to be built," he said.

"We're going to stop the drug trade," he added. "The drug trade is an impossibility right now for our country."

He noted he's been endorsed by the union of Border Patrol agents and by Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County, Arizona.

Savage referenced recent reports that Hillary Clinton is in ill health in contrast to Trump's energy at the age of 70.

"Well, I think it's parents," Trump said. "It must be parental. People have been asking me that question. They say, you know, you have a lot of strength.

"You need it. We have ISIS, we have trade deals, we have borders, we have military vets we have to take care of. You really need it. You need it 100 percent."

Savage closed noting the desperation of his listeners when they contemplate the possibility of a Hillary Clinton presidency.

"Donald, can you beat her?" Savage asked.

"I think so. I think I absolutely can. I think we have the better issues. I think she's a very flawed candidate. I think she has a horrible past. She got away with murder with this email scandal. It continues onward. I think we're going to win, and you're going to be the happiest man around."

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