Trump scrambles to reverse Rust Belt slide

[left-of-center2012]

Donald Trump’s aides and allies are moving aggressively to shore up his support in three Rust Belt states that propelled him to the presidency — but where his own polling shows him in trouble heading into 2020.

Trump will travel to Pennsylvania Monday for a rally that comes after recent visits to Wisconsin and Michigan, two other states at the center of his reelection strategy. Those appearances are just the most public display of his team’s efforts to fortify his standing.

His campaign is moving to shore up his standing in Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania — where its own polling shows him trailing Joe Biden. The president won each state by less than 1 percentage point in 2016.

There’s concern after a midterm election in which Republicans across the Midwest got clobbered — and as Trump’s trade war is threatening farmers and factory workers who helped put him in office.

Behind the scenes, they've rushed to the aid of languishing state Republican Party machines and have raised concerns that a potential GOP Senate candidate in Michigan could hurt the president’s prospects there.

https://www.politico.com/story/2019/05/20/trump-2020-rust-belt-joe-biden-1332973

[Botany]

1. The president/russia won each state by less than 1 percentage point in 2016.

n/t

[empedocles]

2. Probably putting a call into putin

[gratuitous]

3. Will rallies substitute for a disastrous economic policy?

Time will tell. Of course, Democrats could put their thumb on the scales by sending candidates to Michiconsylvania again and again and again for rallies of their own. Those rallies would feature something a Trump rally couldn't possibly offer: An alternative plan for those states that actually has detailed policy proposals.

[Wellstone ruled]

5. Such a Novel idea.

Gee whiz.

[gratuitous]

7. Yeah, it just came to me

Campaign in contested areas, offer concrete policy proposals, engage with local media without the Fox News filter, and see if we can't get any electoral traction doing that. It's crazy, I warrant you, but maybe it's so crazy it just might work?

[Wellstone ruled]

10. 2016 was a glarring example

of our lack of a Ground Game in the Midwest when it came to crunch time. Gee if you have a great message,why would you not want to get it heard. Friggin thirteen State Strategy backfired before.

[MyOwnPeace]

9. But,

Hillary had a plan to help W.Va coal miners. IQ45 lied and told them that coal will make a big comeback.

Guess who won that one................

Sadly, you can't count on the electorate to think things through. You've got to find a good, solid reason for them to vote for you. There was a thread/posting earlier today that talked about health care and how it helped carry the blue wave in the last election. The way IQ45 and McTurtle continue to attack the system, that could indeed be the power to carry 2020.

BUT, we MUST be sure to GET OUT THE VOTE!!!!!!!!

[gratuitous]

11. Trump told West Virginia what they wanted to hear

And he went back time after time. I don't know how many times Clinton went to West Virginia to campaign, but I'd bet it was fewer times. This is a problem of long-standing for liberals and progressives: We think we need to tell people the logical, simple truth once, and they'll get it. I think we think it's insulting to tell people something again and again, as if they need to be reminded of plain facts, and were more reluctant to offend people than we are eager to get our message across.

We need to get over that. Trump, for all his faults (and they are legion), keeps telling the same lies again and again, undeterred by fact checkers, contradiction by his own staff, and the plain reality staring his audience in the face. We don't have to blithely deny plain facts like Trump does, but we do need to repeat ourselves if we expect our audience to adopt our message.

And yes, get out the vote. This works hand-in-hand with getting our message out.

[trev]

12. I am very much in favor of this strategy.

I may send emails to prospective candidates suggesting it, if you don't mind my using your idea.

[gratuitous]

13. By all means

It's not really "my" idea (more along the lines of Howard Dean's 50 state strategy), but the more Democratic candidates who take it to heart, the better I think our results will be.

[trev]

15. Cool, thanks.

[FakeNoose]

4. Why don't the Repukes just admit they stole those states in 2016?

... and they've done jack-squat since then to help mid-western "rust belt" Americans.

They should explain in WHAT WAY do they think they deserve to win in 2020?
I can't see it, none of us can.

[Maxheader]

6. So what? Rallys?

Will that add jobs cheetox? Will it improve the roads..keep mfg going?
By showing your ugly mug around, what exactly will that accomplish?..

[ProudLib72]

14. That was the plan all along

Get people to vote for the asshole. They lose their jobs. Now they have all the time in the world to attend more rallies! That's the very definition of winning, isn't it?

[Cyrano]

8. Need to keep them close enough to steal