President Trump told supporters at an outdoor rally in Michigan on Sunday that Democratic rival Joseph R. Biden is all about the coronavirus lockdowns and was responsible for terrible trade deals over the past decades that shipped their jobs overseas.
The president, standing in 39-degree weather with snow flurries floating about in Washington, Michigan, told voters that Mr. Biden supported the North American Free Trade Agreement, which Mr. Trump renegotiated to produce the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
Mr. Trump blamed Mr. Biden for being part of the Washington establishment supporting NAFTA that he claimed closed down Michigan factories and sent jobs overseas.
“The corrupt establishment hates me because I don’t answer to them. I answer to you,” Mr. Trump said. “They want to close down your factory, ship your jobs to China.”
The president said he would prevent large numbers of refugees from resettling in Michigan, but he joked they wouldn’t want to come to the state because it is so cold.
“They’ll say, ‘I’m going back — this is terrible,’” Mr. Trump said. “It’s freezing up here.”
He took several swipes at Mr. Biden, saying he is “corrupt” and weak.
Michigan has had strict coronavirus lockdowns, and the president told voters their governor, Democrat Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, must open up their state.
He said Mr. Biden would lock the country down again if given the chance.
“Biden is all about lockdowns. He loves the lockdown,” the president said.
Mr. Trump won Michigan, a state worth 16 electoral votes, in 2016 by less than 1% and has been campaigning hard in the state to win it again.
Mr. Biden has a 6.2-point advantage heading into Tuesday, according to the Real Clear Politics average of polls. In 2016, Democrat Hillary Clinton was up by a 3.4-point average in Michigan.
The president also is set to hold rallies Sunday in Iowa, North Carolina, Georgia and Florida.
• Alex Swoyer can be reached at aswoyer@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.