Trump's Swing-State Tour Takes Him to Michigan
21 Mayo 2020 - 09:00AM
Noticias Dow Jones
By Catherine Lucey
President Trump ventures from the White House to Michigan
Thursday on a day trip designed to applaud workers making
ventilators while also seeking to boost political support in a
battleground state.
The president's third such foray to a key state for the 2020
election in as many weeks, the visit to Michigan for a tour of a
Ford Motor Co. facility making ventilators is perhaps the most
politically fraught, coming amid Mr. Trump's protracted clash with
the state's Democratic governor about the coronavirus response and
reopening of businesses. It comes just a day after he slammed the
state's plans to send absentee ballot applications to all
registered voters.
But it also represents an opportunity for the president to flex
his muscles of incumbency in a state he narrowly flipped from blue
to red in 2016 and one that his advisers increasingly see as a
challenge to hold in 2020.
Even as his administration has been battered by the coronavirus
pandemic, Mr. Trump is embarking on high-profile travel while his
likely Democratic opponent, Joe Biden, has been largely confined to
holding events from his Delaware home.
"I call it an uphill battle, but it's not impossible for him to
win here, " said Michigan GOP strategist Dennis Darnoi. "Going to
the Ford plant, going to Ypsilanti, he's going to make an issue of
trade and where Joe Biden stands on trade. These are all very
strong issues for him."
Still, the optics of the visit could prove complicated.
Mr. Trump, who has eschewed wearing a mask in public, hasn't
committed to wearing one for a tour of a Ford facility in Ypsilanti
making ventilators despite a company policy requiring them. Asked
what he would do Monday, Mr. Trump demurred, saying "we'll see."
The White House also didn't invite Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to the
president's events, her office said, and a Whitmer spokesman
highlighted that the governor has barred nonessential visits to
manufacturing facilities.
"While the president's visit is contrary to the governor's
order, this is an opportunity to showcase how important Michigan is
to the response to COVID-19 and rebuilding our nation's economy,"
said the governor's communications director, Zack Pohl.
Mr. Trump, who has largely been on lockdown since March, but is
eager to open the country, has recently begun venturing out on
official White House trips, though he has yet to resume campaign
appearances or rallies. Recent visits to Arizona and Pennsylvania
followed similar scripts, with the president touring a
manufacturing plant and speaking enthusiastically about the
workforce and reopening, as more than a few songs from the campaign
rally list play in the background.
Ahead of the visit, the president projected optimism about his
chances in the state, saying Wednesday: "I think we're going to do
very well in Michigan." He said he had spoken to Ms. Whitmer that
day and had discussed the flooding in central Michigan where two
dams had failed.
Looking to the 2020 matchup, the president is contending with
rising suburban enthusiasm for Democrats as well as an opponent
with widespread approval in the state. Given that Mr. Trump beat
Hillary Clinton in Michigan by less than 11,000 votes, Democrats
see the state as a prime pickup opportunity.
"He's going to win Michigan. Everybody knows Joe," said Keith
Williams, chairman of the Michigan Democratic Party Black Caucus.
"What he did for the automotive industry saved jobs."
A Fox News poll conducted last month showed Mr. Biden winning
49% of Michigan voters, compared with 41% for Mr. Trump. The survey
of 801 Michigan voters had a margin of error of 3.5 percentage
points.
The Trump campaign believes that the president's messages on
trade and China would resonate with Michigan voters. They have
recently begun airing a series of negative ads against Mr. Biden,
arguing that he has been soft on China. The Biden campaign has
aggressively countered, arguing that Mr. Trump failed to hold
Chinese President Xi Jingping accountable over the coronavirus
pandemic, which originated in China.
Rick Gorka, a spokesman for the Trump Victory committee, the
joint fundraising operation of Mr. Trump's campaign and the
Republican National Committee, also stressed the Trump campaign's
head start on organization in the state.
The Biden campaign said they are also organizing and pointed to
his primary win in Michigan over Sen. Bernie Sanders -- in which he
won every county -- as evidence of his strength in the state, and
said his experience working to rescue the auto industry, expand
health-care access and his union support would aid him in
Michigan.
Write to Catherine Lucey at catherine.lucey@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 21, 2020 09:45 ET (13:45 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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