Election 2024: Trump travels to the Democratic stronghold in Wisconsin

WAUNAKEE, Wis. (AP) — Former President Donald Trump spent more than an hour before Tuesday evening Vice President Debate Election campaign in one Democratic County that is crucial Kamala Harris ‘ hopes for victory in the key battleground state of Wisconsin.

The Republican Trump appeared at a manufacturing plant in Waunakee, a suburb of Wisconsin’s capital Madison in the Democratic stronghold of Dane County. Trump never campaigned in Dane County or visited as president.

At an event billed as an economic theme, Trump jumped from topic to topic and also took on Democratic candidate Harris on issues including foreign policy, crime and immigration, while occasionally turning to criticism of outgoing President Joe Biden.

“I ask every citizen to join me in ushering in some kind of new golden age for America,” Trump told hundreds of employees at Dane Manufacturing, a metals manufacturer with a long history Host Republican Candidates and officials.

On the occasion of the Georgia Democrat’s 100th birthday, Trump also took a swipe at former President Jimmy Carter.

With empty praise, Trump declared the one-time Carter the “luckiest man” because he was “considered a brilliant president” compared to Biden. Trump made no mention of Carter’s birthday or his status as the longest-living former president.

Later Tuesday, Trump held an event at a museum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin’s largest city and home to the largest number of Democratic voters and the second largest Republican voters in the state. The event aimed to highlight “school choice” initiatives that provide incentives for families to send their children to private schools. “Universal school choice” was highlighted in the Republican platform this year.

Trump answered questions for more than half an hour. He claimed that the US was facing the most dangerous period since World War II, citing the escalating Middle East conflict and the Russia-Ukraine war. He argued again that he would have prevented these conflicts if he had won a second term four years ago.

He accused Biden of being weak towards the Iranian leadership. When asked about an Iranian attack on a US base in Iraq during his presidency – revenge for the US killing of Iranian Revolutionary Guard General Qassem Soleimani – Trump downplayed it Suffered brain injuries by more than 100 military personnel.

“Do you mean injured because you had a headache? Because the bombs never hit the fortress,” he said.

Last Saturday he held a rally in western Wisconsin, where he accused Harris of crimes committed illegally by people in the country.

Both of his planned stops were ahead of him debate on Tuesday in New York between Trump’s vice presidents JD Vancea senator from Ohio and Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Waltzthe governor of Minnesota.

Dane County, the site of Trump’s first stop, is Wisconsin’s fastest-growing county and an economic engine for the state, fueled by jobs in the health care and technology industries. The University of Wisconsin is also located here.

Dane County’s population grew by about 30,000 people between 2016 and 2020. Since then, it has risen by another 13,000, according to the latest U.S. Census Bureau estimate.

This poses a challenge for Republicans, especially given that nearly 90% of registered voters in the county cast ballots in 2020. Biden won 75% of the vote in Dane County that year, beating Trump in the county by 181,000 votes while the state rose by less than 21,000. Hillary Clinton beat Trump by 47 points in Dane County in 2016, and Trump won the state by less than a point.

That’s a point that former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson raised with Trump. Addressing the crowd before Trump’s arrival, Thompson said the former president should “go where the opposition is.”

“And the answer was, ‘Isn’t Madison very liberal?'” Thompson said. “Yes, but Dane County has the third most Republican votes in the state of Wisconsin and we just need to increase it.”

Democratic presidential candidates have long come to Dane County to hold large rallies to fire up the base. Harris campaigned there On September 20, she held a rally in Madison that was attended by more than 10,000 people.

Waunakee, which bills itself as “the only Waunakee in the world,” is slightly more Republican than the county as a whole. In 2020, Trump received 36% of the vote there, compared to less than 23% nationally.

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Cooper reported from Milwaukee. Associated Press writer Thomas Beaumont in Des Moines, Iowa, contributed to this report.