US Presidential: Can Trump Lose Key Michigan State?
Audio 01:23
Supporters of US President Donald Trump in St. Joseph, Michigan on October 20, 2020 (Don Campbell / The Herald-Palladium via AP)
Text by: RFI Follow
6 min
Michigan is one of the key states for the November 3 election.
Four years ago, Donald Trump won to everyone's surprise this cradle of the American auto industry and traditional Democratic stronghold with a lead of less than 11,000 votes over Hillary Clinton.
In Monroe, the current president had made a real hit: 22 points more than his Democratic competitor.
Over the past twenty years, the city has lost many of its manufacturing plants.
The speech of the outgoing president, who had promised to attack international trade treaties and bring jobs back to the region, still finds a lot of followers.
Publicity
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With our special envoys to Monroe,
Stefanie Schüler
and
Bertrand Haeckler
Kelly's house is obvious.
Its facades are richly decorated with posters bearing the name of Donald Trump.
On its lawn, there are signs with the slogan "
Make America great again
" (Let's
make America great again
).
This seasonal worker in a garden center in Monroe is proud to lend her support to the president, who, in her eyes, is not a politician like the others: "
Politicians say what you want to hear, not what they say. will do.
He says what he thinks and he does what he says.
"
Donald Trump's big victory in Monroe in 2016 was a real earthquake in the local political landscape.
“
We have a lot of auto workers in the area,”
says Kelly.
They always voted like the union tells them to vote.
But people are starting to wake up.
"
"
Something's going to happen
" after the elections
The unions are close to the Democratic Party and are calling this year to vote for Joe Biden.
Kelly, she does not regret having chosen Donald Trump.
“
We always had financial worries.
But now my husband and I are doing better than ever.
"
As the election approaches, this mother does not rule out possible post-election unrest.
“
The division is very strong, above all because the Democratic Party wants to make this country a socialist country.
Something's going to happen.
Anything can happen because we don't know what the Democrats are up to.
For me they are evil people.
"
►
To listen: Good Morning from Cleveland, with Republicans hostile to Donald Trump
"
Notes revolting
" Trump on miltaires
Jerry Mackart, he votes Democrat "
always
", as he says.
The 73-year-old has lived in Monroe his entire life, except for his two years in the military.
Jerry is a Vietnam War veteran.
In a few days, he will give his voice to Joe Biden.
Among other things, because he doesn't like the way Donald Trump talks about the US military at all.
“
I was in Vietnam from January 24, 1967 to January 24, 1968 with the First Infantry Division,
” Jerry says.
I still have nightmares about it.
The president calls soldiers who died during World War I "loosers and morons"
.
These remarks shocked my veteran friends, whether they were in the Korean War or the Vietnam War.
Because we wanted to serve our country!
You know, there were guys from Monroe who were killed in Vietnam.
It was them that I thought of immediately after hearing the president speak like that.
It was appalling!
"
Jerry also did not digest the "
disparaging remarks to generals
" made by Donald Trump.
“
All these generals are combat veterans,” he
recalls.
They have seen the war!
They know how it is!
And so if the president addresses them in this way, it is a shame!
In all my life, I have never heard a president degrade our military leadership like he did.
Never !
".
►
See also: Presidential election in the United States: early voting breaks records
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