Political expert breaks down potential impact of Obama, Trump visiting Michigan
With the midterm election fast approaching, this weekend will see some of the most high-profile group of names visiting Michigan in a long time - former President Barack Obama and President Trump.
Obama will be joining Democratic nominee for governor Jocelyn Benson and Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed on Saturday for a campaign appearance in Detroit, and Mr. Trump will be making a stop in Port Huron to campaign for Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers and gubernatorial candidate John James.
"I think the weekend is big not just because of who is coming but also because this marks the opening of in-person early voting and that's going to tell us a lot about where the enthusiasm is," said Oakland University professor Peter Trumbore.
"Whenever you bring in these big names, what you're trying to do is excite your base, and you're trying to whip them up and get them excited to turn out and vote for you."
Trumbore told CBS Detroit on Friday that Obama's visit, in particular, could help El-Sayed's campaign.
"Obama, in particular, I think is a smart choice, and it's a smart choice for him to go to Detroit because Black voters is a constituency that El-Sayed has struggled to connect with," Trumbore said.
While Trumbore says Mr. Trump's visit may not be as impactful for Rogers.
"I think it's not going to help Rogers with independent voters; it's not going to help Rogers with some of those folks in the last general election and have really felt burned by his policies, whether we're talking about the tariffs or where inflation is or cuts to health care," he said.
Trumbore also says that the president's announcement Friday on dropping some tariffs on Canada could be a good political move for Republicans running in these midterms, especially in areas like Port Huron, which is right on the border. But he doesn't expect prices to actually change in the next 11 days, so the difference come Election Day could be marginal at best.
