Former President Barack Obama campaigns for Michigan Democrats at Detroit rally
With a little over a week to go before the midterm elections, all eyes are on Michigan as a battleground state. Former President Barack Obama was in Detroit Saturday to drum up voter support for Democratic candidates in the state.
Speaking in front of a crowd at Cass Technical High School, Obama spoke up for Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Michigan, Democratic nominee for governor Jocelyn Benson and other candidates who were at the rally.
"We're voting for change right here in Michigan," Obama said.
The former president also criticized tariffs that President Trump's administration has imposed on Canada, Michigan's largest export market in 2025, according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
"Somehow, we've gotten them so mad because they're just constantly being abused and talked about," Obama said.
Mr. Trump on Friday slashed tariffs on a handful of Canadian products that are used widely by Maine's agricultural industry. The items that are no longer subject to 50% tariffs include corrugated boxes, crates, plastic sacks, packing machinery, refrigeration equipment and seaweed, according to a White House proclamation. Several new categories of Canadian products were slapped with 50% duties in exchange, including shampoo, vinyl flooring, coffins, carpets and window-unit air conditioners.
Obama served as president of the United States from 2009 to 2017, winning the Michigan vote in both 2008 and 2012. He was the first African American to hold the office.
El-Sayed said he's been watching the former president since his speech at the Democratic National Convention in 2004.
"He showed us all what elegance, and grace and determination look like in a politician," El-Sayed said.
Obama said El-Sayed is "as Michigan as it gets," mentioning his upbringing in the state and his education at the University of Michigan.
Also on the campaign trail on Saturday was Republican U.S. Senate candidate for Michigan, Mike Rogers. His bus tour started in the morning in Ingham County and made stops in Lansing, New Hudson, Waterford and Gibraltar.
CBS News Detroit has reached out to Rogers' campaign and the Michigan Republican Party for comment on the former president's visit, but has yet to hear back.
The Republican Governors Association released a statement regarding the rally saying, in part, "Michiganders have been failed by years of Democrat control: the highest energy prices in the Midwest, an education system that ranks 45th in the nation, and six of Michigan cities are on the most dangerous list."
President Trump is scheduled to make a stop in Port Huron, Michigan, to campaign for Rogers and Republican gubernatorial candidate John James on Sunday.
