President Donald Trump on Wednesday ripped House Speaker Paul Ryan for comments he made about birthright citizenship, as he claimed for the latest time that Republicans would do better at protecting people with pre-existing conditions which his party has sought to revoke.

SHARP WORDS FOR RYAN

With the midterm elections less than a week away, Trump took aim at Ryan for the Wisconsin Republican saying that birthright citizenship can’t be ended with an executive order.

“Paul Ryan should be focusing on holding the Majority rather than giving his opinions on Birthright Citizenship, something he knows nothing about!” said Trump in a tweet. Trump told Axios in an interview released Tuesday that he planned to sign an executive order eliminating birthright citizenship, a proposal that experts said wouldn’t hold up to legal challenges. In another tweet Wednesday, Trump said, “This case will be settled by the United States Supreme Court!”

Also read:George Conway calls Trump plan to end birthright citizenship unconstitutional.

The president also hardened his stance regarding a caravan of Central American migrants heading toward the U.S., telling reporters as many as 15,000 military troops could be sent to the border with Mexico. That’s more than twice the number the Pentagon has said could be deployed.

PRE-EXISTING-CONDITIONS PLEDGE

With health care one of the top midterm-election issues, Trump said on Twitter that “Republicans will protect people with pre-existing conditions far better than the Dems!”

Trump made a similar statement last week. Yet his Justice Department decided not to defend the Affordable Care Act in court against a GOP-led lawsuit from 20 states. The law — commonly known as Obamacare — bars insurers from denying customers coverage if they have a pre-existing condition. Trump backed Republican legislation that failed that would have scaled back such protections.

Opinion:How Republicans gave up their advantage on health care to the Democrats.

JOBS EVENT AND FLORIDA RALLY

Before heading to a “Make America Great Again” rally in Florida, Trump attended a White House event focused on apprenticeships and job skills.

Corporate chiefs in attendance included Scott Donnelly of Rhode Island-based conglomerate Textron Inc. TXT, +1.70% and Richard J. “Jake” Locklear of Texas-based Atlantic Plant Maintenance Inc., which is a General Electric Co. GE, +0.99% subsidiary. As MarketWatch reports, the CEOs invited have given a collective $64,000 to Republicans.

Trump used the event to repeat his belief that stocks DJIA, +1.33% would take a hit if Democrats win in the midterm elections, saying if next Tuesday’s contests don’t favor Republicans, “I think you’re all going to lose a lot of money.” He also vowed that the U.S. would start paying down its debt, returning to a pledge he made over the summer.

Trump’s tax cuts and higher government spending are leading to greater borrowing needs, and the Treasury is on track to issue $1.34 trillion in new debt this year — more than double the amount in 2017.

See:Treasury sets record $83 billion quarterly debt refunding.