Politics

Trump rips Biden as ‘diehard globalist’ in Midwest rallies

President Trump on Friday slammed Democratic challenger Joe Biden as a “diehard globalist” during Midwest campaign stops, pinning trade policies that caused outsourcing on the 36-year senator.

“He destroyed your industry, but I brought it back,” Trump said during a rally in the Detroit suburb of Waterford Township, Michigan. “At every turn, Biden twisted the knife into the back of Michigan workers and workers all over the country.”

The president gave a similar closing pitch in Wisconsin four days before the Nov. 3 election.

“Joe Biden has spent the last 47 years outsourcing your jobs, opening your borders and sacrificing American blood and treasure in endless foreign wars,” Trump told a large rally in Green Bay.

Trump in 2016 narrowly won Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania —three traditionally Democratic Rust Belt states — and most predictive models say he must win at least one to secure a second term.

Trump routinely highlights Biden’s 1993 vote as a Delaware senator in favor of the North American Free Trade Agreement, and Biden’s advocacy for China joining the World Trade Organization in 2001.

“Joe Biden was a cheerleader for NAFTA, which is the worst trade deal ever made, and China’s entry into the World Trade Organization,” Trump said in Wisconsin. “Wisconsin workers, you suffered as much as anybody.”

In July, the newly Trump-renegotiated US-Mexico-Canada trade pact took effect. It increases minimum wages for auto production to make US labor costs more competitive and boosts the percentage of cars that must be made in the three countries to avoid tariffs.

Trump said in Michigan that “a vote for me is to keep and create auto jobs and all sorts of jobs in Michigan where they belong. I ended the NAFTA nightmare and replaced it with the brand new USMCA… You know how I know it’s good? Because Mexico and Canada aren’t so happy.”

Donald Trump
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Trump, who also has waged a trade war with China in a bid to force reforms, said Biden cannot be trusted to drive a hard bargain.

Trump invoked documents from Biden’s son Hunter Biden’s abandoned laptop that link the former vice president to a 2017 business proposal with a Chinese energy firm. Details of the negotiation, describing a 10 percent cut for “the big guy,” were corroborated last week by former Hunter Biden business partner Tony Bobulinski.

“They took billions of dollars from the Chinese Communists while Vice President Biden shipped Michigan jobs to China. How the hell can you have somebody fighting for you against China and he’s getting money, him and his family are getting millions and millions of dollars?” Trump said in Michigan.

RealClearPolitics polling averages indicate that Biden leads by 6.5 percentage points in Michigan, 6.4 points in Wisconsin and 3.6 points in Pennsylvania.

But Trump is believed to have understated support in most polls. In 2016, a final polling average had him losing Michigan by 3.4 points, but he ended up ahead by .3 percent. In Wisconsin, Hillary Clinton led by 6.5 points in pre-election polls, but lost to Trump by .7 percent.

Trump is attempting to out-hustle Biden in the closing days of the campaign with three rallies Friday — including a final stop in Minnesota — and four rallies in Pennsylvania on Saturday. He will host five swing-state rallies Sunday and another five Monday, including more stops in the Midwest.