The signs held this Friday by the more than 5,000 people who gathered inside the facilities of the University of Arizona football field in Tucson no longer read “Hope” (Hope) that could be seen in August at the Chicago Convention: they said “Vote” (Vote). With each mockery by former President Barack Obama about Donald Trump, the blue cards shook in the air with laughter and boos. “No, don’t do boovote” (“No, don’t boo, vote“), Obama has responded to each show of rejection of Trump by the public.
The former president has visited the border city of this key state 18 days before the elections with the aim of stopping the momentum that the Republican has achieved in the swing state in recent weeks. A CBS poll showed this Friday how Trump continues to distance himself in Arizona from Harris with 51% of support, compared to 48%.
Immigration and abortion, two of the big issues of the campaign, come together in this swing statewhich shares a border with Mexico and where a law from 1864 was almost recovered to completely prohibit abortion, which can only be performed up to the fifteenth week. The CBS poll reflected a clear dichotomy: while Harris continues to lead the majority of support in Arizona when asked about reproductive rights, 79% of voters believe that Trump is better at managing the border.
In the last elections, Joe Biden managed to change the color of Arizona and dye it blue for the first time since 1996. The Latino vote was key for this to happen in the fourth state in the country with the largest Hispanic population. Four years later, polls show how Harris is stagnant among Latino voters and Trump manages to consolidate his growth among them. The other group where it is losing strength is black men, especially young people under 30, according to polls.
Charles Johnson is a 20-year-old young man who studies in Tucson and who came to the rally to see Obama because, he explains, he likes him. “But I will vote for Donald Trump.” Charles explains that in the legislative elections that are also held on November 5, he will vote for Democrats like Ruben Gallego, the Arizona candidate for the US Senate who is accompanying Obama this afternoon and for whom the former president is also asking for a vote. But, for him, that is not incompatible with voting for Trump: “I feel like Democrats have taken for granted the support of black people and, definitely, black men.”
“I will vote for Trump because I believe he will put an end to many of the wars that exist in the world now. I think he’s the strongest president we’ve ever had and he’s a smart guy, and he’s a tough person for other countries to deal with,” Charles argues. Last week, Obama asked black men to leave the “excuses” behind and vote for Harris. Even though Charles likes Obama, he doesn’t share his point of view: “I think he’s wrong and that black men shouldn’t just vote for what they expect. Black men must vote in a way that helps black men.”
Although Harris continues to have the majority of support among both black and Latino voters, the progress Trump is making worries Democrats. That is why Obama has intensified his criticism of the magnate this Friday. Not only does he paint him as a selfish candidate who only thinks of himself, but now he also attacks him because of his age and questions his abilities to assume the presidency.
“You would be worried if your grandfather behaved like that,” Obama said in reference to the forum the tycoon hosted this week in Pennsylvania. In the videos of the event you can see how the Republican stops answering the questions and spends more than half an hour swinging to the music. “Tucson, we don’t need to see what an older, crazier Donald Trump is like without limitations,” Obama said to laughter and applause from the audience.
That he has sharpened his attacks against the magnate does not mean that he has stopped putting emphasis on the new flank that was drawn in Chicago to attack Trump: reducing him to the image of an egomaniac. Obama has cited all the merchandising that Trump has launched during the campaign, such as gold sneakers, a watch valued at $100,000, or a Bible. “This is my favorite: It has the Trump Bible. “He wants you to buy the word of God, Donald Trump edition.”
Obama has focused on reproductive rights during his speech, since on November 5, Arizona citizens will also vote in a referendum to decide whether to include the protection of the right to abortion in their state Constitution. “I think that for us one of the most important issues in these elections is abortion. Being able to have access to an abortion is very important for many women in the United States, without it many women die in the country, that’s why,” says Emily, a 20-year-old girl from Tucson who cited reproductive rights as the main reason for the who will vote for Harris.
“It cuts women’s reproductive freedom because this does not imply any change in their lives,” Obama said from the stage. Beyond sharpening the attacks, another symptom of the Democrats’ concern about the polls and the prospects of a very close electoral race is the former president’s agenda. In the last 18 days, Obama has intensified his tour of the different key states in order to give one last push to Harris. Tucson has been the starting point of a tour that also plans to go to Las Vegas (Nevada), Detroit (Michigan) and Madison (Wisconsin). Next week, Obama will stage his first joint campaign event with Harris in Georgia, after handing her the “Yes she can” to Harris.
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