Trump Once Again Finds His Way To Michigan

The GOP nominee will hold a rally in Novi on Friday.

Cheyna Roth/MPRN

Donald Trump is coming back to Michigan Friday. The Republican presidential nominee is holding a rally at the Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi.

With one debate down and two to go, the election is in peak mode. The candidates will face off again on October 9, but until then there is still much campaigning to do.

Matt Grossmann is a political science expert at Michigan State University.

He says Oakland typically swings Republican but, “It’s not necessarily a place that you would automatically identify with Donald Trump. So it’s an opportunity for him to, to nail down people who usually vote Republican but may not yet be on board with him.” Grossmann says Michigan has moved up the list of important battleground states.

In the aftermath of Monday’s debate, Trump’s Michigan campaign director Scott Hagerstrom said Trump’s speech is going to center on “insiders versus outsiders.”

“That’s going to be the heart of his message and it’s about putting everyday average Americans, putting their interests first for once instead of those of the globalist agenda,” he said.

It’s Trump’s fifth visit here since he got the Republican nomination. Trump made two trips to Detroit, held a rally in Dimondale and visited a church and water treatment plant in Flint.

But while Trump and his running-mate, Gov. Mike Pence, have personally visited Michigan more than once, Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton has made one Michigan stop. But her surrogates have been crisscrossing the state – former president Bill Clinton was at a Labor Day parade and recently daughter Chelsea Clinton made several stops around the state.

Democratic Congresswoman Debbie Dingell says Trump’s visits could be good for Clinton.

“Michigan’s competitive,” she said. “And I think it’s going to be competitive for many different reasons. I actually am glad that Donald Trump’s coming because every time he’s here people see more of the real Donald Trump.”

Hagerstrom says he thinks Trump will make at least one more visit to Michigan before Election Day.   

Author

  • Cheyna has interned with Michigan Radio and freelanced for WKAR public radio in Lansing. She's also done some online freelancing and worked on documentary films.