Trump smears Detroit by appealing for votes in the suburbs of Michigan’s largest city

NOVI, Mich. (AP) — Donald Trump continued to denigrate Detroit as he appealed for votes Saturday in a suburb of the largest city in the swing state of Michigan.

“I think Detroit and some of our areas make us a developing country,” the former president told supporters in New York. He said people want him to say Detroit is “great,” but he thinks it “needs help.”

Earlier this month, the Republican candidate for the White House told an economics group in Detroit that “the whole country will be like Detroit” if Democrat Kamala Harris wins the presidency. The comment was met with sharp criticism from Democrats, who praised the city for its recent drop in crime and growing population.

Trump’s stop in Novi after Friday’s event in Traverse City is a sign of Michigan’s importance in a tight race. Harris is scheduled to attend a rally in Kalamazoo later Saturday with former first lady Michelle Obama, the first day early in-person voting is available across Michigan. More than 1.4 million ballots have already been cast, representing 20% ​​of registered voters. Trump won the state in 2016, but Democrat Joe Biden won four years later.

Michigan is home to major auto companies and the nation’s largest concentration of United Auto Workers members. It also has a significant Arab-American population, and many were frustrated with the Biden administration’s support for Israel’s offensive in Gaza following Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.

During his rally, Trump highlighted local Muslim and Arab-American leaders who joined him on stage. These voters “could swing the election one way or another,” Trump said, adding that he was counting on “overwhelming support” from voters in Michigan.

“When President Trump was president, there was peace,” said one of those leaders, Dearborn Heights Mayor Bill Bazzi. “We didn’t have any problems. There were no wars.”

While Trump is trying to capitalize on community frustration with the Democratic administration, he has a history of anti-Democratic policies, including a travel ban targeting Muslim countries while in office and a promise to extend it to Gaza refugees if he wins on November 5.

Trump’s ally, Republican Darrell Issa of California, the grandson of Lebanese immigrants, told reporters that Trump is winning the support of more Arab Americans and cultivating relationships with leaders in the Middle East that will bring greater stability to the region.

In lengthy remarks to supporters, Trump lashed out at Harris and the media with familiar barbs and promoted immigration and energy policies, which are major elements of the campaign. For example, he said that immigrants are “taking jobs away from black people and Latinos.” Government data contradicts this claim, showing that immigrant labor contributes to economic growth and provides advancement opportunities for native-born workers.

Trump drove past a rally in State College, Pennsylvania.