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    • Trump speaks in Grand Rapids hours before polls open in Michigan
    patheur

    Trump speaks in Grand Rapids hours before polls open in Michigan

    Sakege Posted on

    Big Rapids— Former President Donald Trump kicked off Election Day with an early-morning, late-night rally in Michigan’s second-largest city, telling thousands of supporters inside Van Andel Arena that “if we win Michigan, we win everything.” “.

    Trump lashed out at his opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, and an “evil Democratic establishment” during a campaign rally at the Grand Rapids, once a Republican strongholdcity ​​in which he has made his traditional last stop. His last campaign rallies in 2016, when he won Michigan, and 2020, when Trump lost the state to Democrat Joe Biden, both took place in Grand Rapids.

    Shortly after 1 a.m., Trump questioned the vote-counting machines that employees routinely use to tally results. He argued that it would be safer and faster to get rid of the machines and have votes cast only on a single election day.

    “Maybe these machines that we paid so much money for will be needed for two weeks,” Trump said. “Can you believe it?…

    “Something is going on with this. What the hell are we doing? We don’t want to wait 10 or two days… We want the answer tonight.”

    Trump took the stage in Grand Rapids after midnight and continued speaking shortly after 2 a.m..following comments from some of Trump’s adult children.

    During his speech, Trump took familiar jabs at his political enemies, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, whom he implied he would describe as a gender slur without using the term.

    “It starts with ‘b,’ but I won’t say it,” Trump said, prompting some Trump supporters inside the arena to shout the insult.

    Further: Michigan could decide on these 10 counties on Election Day

    Trump also described former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley and his former Chief of Staff John Kelly as “our stupid generals, our terrible generals” and specifically said that Kelly, a retired four-star US Army general, Marines, he was “dumb as a rock.” Both Kelly and Milley have said that Trump would behave like a fascist if he returned to the White House.

    Trump made broad promises about the economic benefit he would bring to the country through tariffs on foreign auto parts and drilling for more American oil and gas. He vowed to toughen U.S. immigration policy, denigrating immigrants who cross the U.S. southern border and calling for “the death penalty for any migrant who kills a U.S. citizen.”

    He also issued warnings about Harris’ economic plans, predicting that it would create an economic depression.

    A group from Michigan Economists analyzed Trump and Harris’ economic plans.. Harris’ economic policies include incentivizing American manufacturing, down payment assistance, child tax credits and targeted tariffs on certain items. Trump’s include boosting fossil fuel extraction, issuing sweeping tariffs on imported goods and renewing some 2017 tax cuts, as well as cutting construction regulations.

    Trump again repeated the claim that Harris would issue an “electric vehicle mandate.” The Biden administration did not require purchases or sales of electric vehicles. New gasoline-powered cars and trucks continue to be sold. The administration proposed Tighter tailpipe emissions standards. In March, it will be difficult for companies to meet this without increasing sales of electric vehicles.

    As a key swing state, Michigan has become central to the 2024 presidential election. Republican candidate Trump and his running mate, Ohio Senator JD Vance, as well as their Democratic rivals, Vice President Kamala Harris and the governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz, have made frequent stops in Michigan in the final days of the campaign.

    Walz gathered his followers in another demonstration on Monday night at Hart Plaza in downtown Detroit, hours after Vance rallied Trump supporters in Flint. Harris visited Detroit, Pontiac and Michigan State University East Lansing on sunday. Trump was last in Michigan on Friday, seeking votes in Dearborn and Warren.

    Kris Cox, 29, of Holland, said she was confident voters in swing states would carry Trump to a second term. He attended Trump’s rally Monday night to show his support for what he sees as a certain Trump victory.

    Cox predicted that Michigan’s Muslim residents would help Trump win Michigan’s 15 electoral votes on his way to the White House. Israel’s war in Gaza looms over voters in the Muslim and Arab American communities, who have been flooded with attention from both campaigns. Some community leaders have endorsed Harris, others Trump. Third-party candidates are also making progress.

    “The Muslim community has found a home with Donald Trump, which I think is really encouraging,” Cox said. “We saw that even Rashida Tlaib refused to endorse Kamala, so I think that community is finding a voice within the Republican Party.”

    Tlaib spoke at a United Auto Workers union rally in Detroit on Friday in favor of lower-ranking Michigan Democratic candidates, but did not endorse Harris during her speech.

    Further: How the Gaza war is shaping votes in metro Detroit’s Arab-American community

    Dearborn Heights Mayor Bill Bazzi was among a group of Michigan supporters who spoke before Trump’s arrival. He said he has heard from both business owners and new immigrants in his community who support Trump.

    Bazzi, who has spoken at other Trump campaign stops, said people encouraged him not to endorse Trump out of fear he would lose his upcoming mayoral race in the Detroit suburb.

    “I told them I would rather lose my election than have a bunch of warmongers win the election,” Bazzi said.

    A video of Trump played at Van Andel Arena as the crowd awaited Trump’s arrival. In it, Trump encouraged them to vote “any way possible,” including by absentee ballot or early in-person voting.

    He also encouraged voters to “keep their eyes open because these people want to cheat and they do,” echoing the debunked claims he continues to make about the 2020 election results and casting doubt on the legitimacy of the upcoming results.

    There was no evidence of widespread fraud in the 2020 election, according to repeated investigations by the then-Republican-majority Michigan Legislature and federal prosecutors.

    Earlier in the day, the Harris campaign hosted a news conference in Grand Rapids featuring former Republican Rep. Fred Upton of St. Joseph and a group of prominent Michigan Democrats who encouraged residents to vote for Harris.

    Upton endorsed Harris for president last month. He joined U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, U.S. Rep. Hillary Scholten and Michigan Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks, all Democrats, at the Grand Rapids news conference.

    “I’ve been conservative my whole life,” Upton said. “I have never voted for a Democrat for president…until now. (Vice President) Harris and I disagree on many issues. But I know she is strong, she is a committed public servant, she is smart, and she has the best interests of the American people at heart. “She embodies the kind of leadership we need in the Oval Office these days to solve the nation’s problems.”

    More than 3 million votes already cast

    Although Election Day officially begins Tuesday morning, nearly 44% of Michigan’s registered voters have already cast their ballots, according to Michigan’s secretary of state. Approximately 1.2 million voted at in-person early voting sites in this election, the first presidential one in which that is allowed, and another 1.98 million people have voted absentee.

    Further: Detroit tabulates 95% of absentee ballots received before Election Day

    Danny Earl, 22, of Grand Rapids is one of those early voters. He said he followed the guidance of the anti-abortion group Right to Life of Michigan and cast his ballot in person before Election Day.

    “I thought it was nice to get out, and if people see more people getting out early, that might encourage them to get out too,” Earl said.

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    Sakege
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