TAMPA, Fla. -- Donald Trump promised Hispanics "a much better life" on Wednesday in a Florida speech that continued his recent effort to soften his tone and broaden his support 11 weeks before Election Day.

The Republican presidential candidate also repeated his promise to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexican border to keep out aliens, underscoring the tricky balancing act he faces in retaining backing from conservatives while beckoning to moderates for their votes.

"I am going to fight to give every Hispanic citizen a much better future, a much better life," Trump told a rally in Tampa as polls show him trailing in the critical state. "You have the right to walk outside without being shot. You have a right to a good education for your child. You have the right to own your home. You have the right to have a good job."

At a rally later Wednesday in Jackson, Miss., Trump repeated his claim that Democratic rival Hillary Clinton "is a bigot who sees people of color only as votes."

Clinton rejected that accusation during an interview Wednesday night on CNN. "He is taking a hate movement mainstream," she said, arguing Trump is "very much peddling bigotry and prejudice and paranoia."

Trump's appeal to Hispanics in Florida largely echoed his recent outreach to black voters. He suggested that Hispanics have been taken for granted by Democrats and that the 600,000 Hispanic-owned businesses in Florida would benefit under his economic plan, but he offered few specifics.

"Hispanics are tired of being used by these phony politicians," Trump roared above the rumbles of a thunderstorm audible inside. "I say, what do you have to lose? I will fix it."

Trump made no mention at the rally, largely attended by white supporters, of his remarks Tuesday that he would consider "softening" laws dealing with illegal aliens.

At the rally in Jackson, a black-majority city, Trump made a similar outreach to black voters and called Clinton "a bigot," saying she takes for granted the support of minority-group voters.

Trump aides confirmed he will soon tour churches, businesses and charter schools in black and Hispanic urban neighborhoods. Dr. Ben Carson, an ally and former GOP primary rival, said he will accompany Trump on at least one visit.

Former U.K. Independence Party leader Nigel Farage, who championed the British vote to exit the European Union, appeared onstage at a rally with Trump in Jackson and said that if he were a U.S. citizen, he "wouldn't vote for Hillary Clinton if you paid me."

Introducing Farage, Trump likened the successful British exit vote to the coming presidential vote in the U.S.

"They voted to break away from rules, by large corporations and media executives who believe in a world without borders," he said. "They voted to reclaim control over immigration, the economy and over their government. Working people and the great people of the U.K. took control of their destiny."

Sanders to stump for Clinton

Trump dominated presidential campaign coverage for the day as Clinton was fundraising in California.

Her drive for the White House got a rhetorical boost when her defeated competitor for her party's nomination, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, said he'll campaign actively for Clinton this fall, with swings already planned in New Hampshire, New York and Washington state.

"Politics is tough stuff, and you've got to make difficult choices," Sanders said in an interview in Burlington, Vt. "To me this was not a particularly difficult choice. Donald Trump would be a disaster for everything I believe in and I think my supporters believe in."

Sanders, who turns 75 on Sept. 8, also said he's leaning toward seeking re-election as an independent senator in 2018.

As she prepares for debates against Trump, Clinton on Wednesday released her proposal for creating a special fund that would enable health officials to respond more quickly with emergency funding for public-health threats.

"Doctors and public health experts have been warning for months that the Zika virus was likely to reach the continental United States, but Congress has failed to pass the president's emergency funding request," the Democratic presidential nominee said in a statement. "As a result, the Zika virus has gained a foothold in Miami, and 196 people have already been infected in the city - infections that may have been preventable."

Members of Congress have been at loggerheads for months over the fate of a $1.1 billion spending bill proposed by President Barack Obama that would help fight the spread of Zika. Negotiations over a bipartisan spending package crumbled in late June. Congress is out of session for August, and lawmakers are not expected to resume legislative business until after Labor Day.

Clinton did not say in her statement Wednesday how much funding she would seek for her proposed Public Health Rapid Response Fund, and a spokesman did not immediately respond to a question regarding that. The Democratic nominee said she envisioned "consistent, year-to-year budgets" that would enable an array of federal agencies to better respond to "major public health crises and pandemics."

Information for this article was contributed by Jonathan Lemire, Jill Colvin, Julie Bykowicz, Emily Wagster Pettus and Dave Gram of The Associated Press; by John Wagner and Anne Gearan of The Washington Post; and by Robert Hutton and Thomas Seal of Bloomberg News.

A Section on 08/25/2016