At rally, Trump paints bleak picture of Democratic control
HAVELOCK, N.C. >> Trying to prove his political clout by pushing a Republican to victory in a special election, President Donald Trump used a North Carolina rally on Monday to paint a bleak picture of a nation that he claimed would be overrun with crime, poverty and immigrants if Democrats seize power in Washington.
Trump, appearing at his first campaign rally in nearly a month, went on the offensive in an effort to change a series of latesummer negative headlines over his slipping poll numbers, warning signs of an economic slowdown and a running battle over hurricane forecasts. He urged the Fayetteville crowd to vote Tuesday for Republican Dan Bishop, brandishing his usual incendiary rhetoric to declare from the stage that “tomorrow is a chance
to send a clear message to the America-hating left.”
While the stakes for the House are high, Trump’s trademark rallies inevitably become more about him than the local candidate, as he uses the stage to settle political scores, sharpen attacks and take on perceived foes. With an eye to his own reelection next fall, he touted his administration’s accomplishments but also urged voters to give him more time.
“That’s why we need four more years,” Trump said at the nearly 90-minute rally. “It’s got to seed — it’s a plant. It has to grow. It has to grow those roots. That’s why 2020 is just as important. Because they will try to take it away.”
Trump’s appearance Monday emerged as a test of the president’s pull with voters. The special election could offer clues about the mindset of Republicans in the suburbs, whose flight from the party fueled the GOP’s 2018 House election losses.
The president enjoys wide popularity within his own party, but a GOP defeat in a red-leaning state could, when combined with a wave of recent bad headlines, portend trouble for his reelection campaign. But before leaving Washington, Trump dismissed questions of whether a poor result for the Republican candidate would serve as a warning sign in next year’s elections.
“No, I don’t see it as a bellwether,” Trump said.