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Tuesday, November 8, 2016 — 3
for her,” he said. “Him being the
president of the United States, he
has a lot of say, experience and
credibility. He’s been the president
of this country for eight years and
there is no one else more qualified
to say who he thinks should be
president.”
Obama
also
took
aim
at
Republican
nominee
Donald
Trump directly, listing reasons
Trump is unfit to be president.
“Donald
Trump
is
temperamentally
unfit
to
be
commander-in-chief,” Obama said.
“Over the weekend, his campaign
took away his Twitter account. If
your closest advisers don’t trust
you to tweet, then how can we trust
him with the nuclear codes?”
Several
politicians
and
candidates
also
spoke
during
the event on the importance of
the youth vote, including Larry
Deitch (D) and Denise Ilitch (D),
candidates for the University’s
Board of Regents, as well as Reps.
Debbie Dingell (D–Mich.), Brenda
Lawrence (D–Mich.), Sandy Levin
(D–Mich.) and Sen. Gary Peters
(D–Mich.).
Before Obama spoke, Chelsea
Clinton told the crowd this election
was not just a choice of politics but
a choice between two different sets
of values.
“There is a world of a difference
between what my mother stands
for and what her opponent does,”
Clinton said. “We have a chance
to prove that ‘stronger together’ is
who we are. It is what my mother
has defined her life by.”
During the last half of his
speech,
Obama
echoed
that
sentiment, asking the audience to
imagine what a Trump presidency
would look like given his actions on
the campaign trail — particularly
toward women and minorities.
“Donald Trump is uniquely
unqualified to hold this job,”
Obama said. “But the good news,
Michigan, is you are uniquely
qualified to make sure he does not
get the job. And the good news is,
you don’t just have to vote against
something — you actually have a
candidate who’s worthy of your
vote.”
Obama’s visit was one of
multiple campaign stops from
both Clinton and Trump in the
state over the past few days, a
potential sign that Michigan will
be more competitive this year than
in years past. In addition to the
president, Clinton herself will visit
Grand Rapids tonight and former
President Bill Clinton campaigned
in Lansing Sunday night. Trump
visited Sterling Heights Sunday
and Republican vice presidential
nominee
Mike
Pence
visited
Lansing on Friday. A Republican
has not won the state since 1988.
In his remarks, Obama noted the
expectation that Michigan would
be close in the election, repeating
his call to vote.
“But, Michigan, all that progress
goes down the drain if we don’t win
tomorrow,” Obama said. “This race
will be close here in Michigan, just
like it will be in a lot of parts of the
country.”
LSA senior Lauren Gallagher,
president of Students for Hillary,
wrote in an email interview that
she thinks Obama’s visit signifies
the importance of the youth vote.
He is one of several campaign
surrogates to talk on campus in the
past few months, including Sen.
Tim Kaine (D-VA), the Democratic
vice presidential nominee, and Sen.
Bernie Sanders (I-VT).
“We’ve seen in past elections
how powerful the student voice can
be,” Gallagher wrote. “Big name
surrogate visits to our campus is
the campaign sending a message
that our voices matter, that the
decision about what direction this
country is headed in is up to us. It’s
my hope that students don’t take
this lightly and turn out tomorrow,
it’s our futures that are on the line
right now.”
LSA junior Casey Martel said
attending the rally was a memory
she will never forget.
“The rally was great,” she said.
“It reminded me of why I am voting
for Clinton. It was definitely a once
in a lifetime experience to hear a
sitting president speak — and the
day before an election.”
OBAMA
From Page 1
nominee Hillary Clinton currently
leads Trump by about 3 points
according
to
RealClearPolitics.
Also on Monday, Trump and
Hillary Clinton visited Grand
Rapids, while Clinton’s daughter,
Chelsea, accompanied President
Barack Obama to the University of
Michigan.
At the Warren event, Trump
Jr. contrasted Clinton with his
father,
saying
that
Trump’s
career doesn’t rely on political
involvement, making his motives
to run altruistic. Trump Jr. also
charged that Clinton didn’t have
the qualifications necessary for
presidency.
“They’re worth $250 million, but
what have they created?” he asked.
“What business? I’m not aware
of any. Who have they hired? I’m
not aware of anyone other than a
couple lobbyists and people who
have scrubbed servers.”
He
also
said
not
enough
attention is being placed on
America’s problems — rather, he
said too much focus is instead on
political correctness and aid that
goes toward foreign countries.
“I watch reporters talking about
how we should be more concerned
about the feelings of people from
countries that hate us,” he said.
“People from countries that can’t
stand our freedoms. People that
hate every aspect of us.”
Trump Jr. also touched on
what he characterized as failures
of the Obama administration,
with a particular emphasis on the
Affordable Care Act. Meanwhile
Obama drew an estimated crowd of
9,000 to the University of Michigan
on Monday, where he emphasized
the success of his legacy and the
importance of its continuation.
“Affordable health care sounds
great on paper,” Trump Jr. said.
“When you get your headline or
your tweet of 140 characters or less
that’s fine. But really we have this
20,000-page document that no one
has really read.”
Given that Trump is better
known as a businessman than
a politician, Ed Holowchak, a
resident of St. Clair Shores, Mich.,
said he found Trump’s decision to
run for presidency to be selfless.
“He’s
an
outsider,
not
a
politician,” Holowchak said. “He
doesn’t have to do this. He’s doing
this just because he loves his
country. When have we ever had
that before?”
Royal Oak resident Mary Tzianis
cited the repeal of the ACA as her
main incentive to vote for Trump.
“I have a young son with autism,
so his care is very expensive for our
family,” Tzianis said. “If Hillary
gets into office, it’s going to put us
in a near-homeless state because
we won’t be able to afford our son’s
care.”
For many who attended the
event, the policies at hand were
more important than the perceived
character traits of the candidates.
“They try to attack Trump’s
character, but they can never
attack what his plans are. They’re
just going by these tiny character
things, but the man has got a plan,”
Tzianis said.
TRUMP
From Page 1
millennials in the state, didn’t ever
entirely transfer their enthusiasm
to Clinton — until recently.
“Many of the students originally
were Sanders supporters, and
I do think that you’ve got some
students that Clinton was not their
first choice,” said Aaron Kall, an
expert on election politics and the
University’s director of debate.
“They’re probably closer to Clinton
than
(Republican
presidential
nominee Donald) Trump but there
were a lot of hard feelings during
the primary and they’re kind of on
the fence on whether to turn
out.”
But as the race in Michigan
has begun to tighten, with Clinton
only five points ahead, Democrats
have begun ramping up their
presence in places like Ann Arbor
in a bid to ensure millennial
enthusiasm as it’s looked like the
state may be headed toward one of
its closest matchups in decades.
In September, Sen. Tim Kaine
(D–Va.),
the
Democratic
vice
presidential nominee, came to
campus. In October, Sanders spoke
at the University of Michigan
Museum of Art. Capping it all off
on Monday, one day before the
election, was President Barack
Obama, displaying the significance
that both Michigan and Michigan’s
millennial vote have suddenly
come to have in the last days of a
narrowing race.
In all these of those visits, a
message has been clear — the vote in
college towns matters, especially in
Michigan. The campus enthusiasm
for
the
surrogates
delivering
the message has been clear, too.
Hundreds of people came to see
Sanders, and an estimated 9,000
came for Obama.
But at Obama’s speech Monday,
how that enthusiasm will translate
to
Clinton
wasn’t
completely
apparent. Clinton has struggled
with the narrative that young
people aren’t enthusiastic about
her, though polling has showed
they overwhelmingly prefer her
over other candidates. In the lead
up to the event, some students
were buzzing more about the
person Clinton sent in her stead,
than the candidate herself, with
several shouts of “four more years”
mingling with chants of “Hillary.”
While waiting in line, Ann Arbor
resident Mimi Lanseur, wearing an
Obama T-shirt, and Yaqoota Aziz,
a recent University alum, said they
believe there is a gap in enthusiasm
between Clinton and Obama. Both
noted, however, that they were still
very much in support of Clinton.
“I’m less enthusiastic, because I
don’t like how controversial she is,”
Aziz said. “But I think she’s just as
competent.”
“She’s the most qualified person
to ever run for president in this
country,” Lanseur said. “Maybe I
don’t get excited about her the way I
got excited about Obama, but I trust
her. And I trust her to make difficult
decisions. And I trust her to be as
informed as possible.”
Don, a merchandise vendor at
Monday’s event who didn’t give
his last name, spelled out the
differences in enthusiasm in a more
quantifiable way.
“With the sales, honestly, if
it’s Hillary events by herself and
it’s just Hillary, sales are kind of
low,” he said. “But when you’ve got
Barack Obama and Michelle doing
something with her, or Bernie
Sanders doing something with her,
sales are good.”
Sanders 2016 buttons, he added,
are always a reliable sell.
For the speakers who took the
stage
before
Obama,
building
enthusiasm among millennials and
students was a clear focus. Appeals
varied from policy topics like from
Clinton’s higher education plan,
which aims to create tuition-
free college to individuals with
families making under 125,000,
to the Affordable Care Act. The
importance of this election and
fighting
bigotry
—
including
criticisms of Clinton’s opponent,
Trump — were also themes, as was
electing the first female president.
“I, as a woman and African
American, have a lot to lose if this
election does not go to Hillary
Clinton,” Rep. Brenda Lawrence
(D–Southfield) told the crowd,
stressing the contrast Clinton
presents to Trump on combatting
discrimination.
A few minutes later, Rep. Sander
Levin (D–Royal Oak) highlighted
Obama administration policies that
he said have aided young people,
asking the crowd to raise their
hands if they had health insurance
under the Affordable Care Act.
In his remarks, Obama touched
on many of those same issues,
though he didn’t make many direct
appeals to students. Instead, he
spoke more broadly, telling the
crowd a Clinton presidency would
lead to job growth, increased
equality and aid with student debt
issues.
“She will work her heart out to
create jobs that families can live
on; childcare that you can afford,”
he said. “She’ll fight for students
who are struggling with college
debt. She’ll fight to make sure that
women get paid the same for doing
the same work as a guy.”
LSA senior Tamara Hofer, who
lined up to get into the event at
5 a.m., said several of the policy
issues discussed were particularly
resonant to her as a student.
“Health care is obviously really
important for me, because 26 isn’t
that far away for me and I’ll be off
my parents’ plan,” she said. “But
also education, and getting more
people into college.”
For LSA junior Jalal Taleb,
comments from several speakers
about combating discriminatory
rhetoric were particularly poignant,
including
those
on
fighting
Islamophobia from Rep. Debbie
Dingell (D-Mich.).
Among some other students on
campus, the contrasts to Trump
were key even if enthusiasm wasn’t
there. LSA sophomore Nicholas
Kolenda, president of the former
Students for Sanders group active
on campus during the primary,
said he believed most of the
individuals who had belonged to
the organization would turn out for
the Democrats.
“As far as I can say, I think the
vast majority of former Sanders
backers are behind Clinton now-
rather enthusiastically or to stop
Trump,” he wrote. “A vast majority
will vote tomorrow!”
Beyond the issues highlighted by
the introductory speakers, Obama
also spoke more directly about his
legacy, telling the crowd he thought
he has earned the right to be trusted
by Michigan voters statewide.
“Plants
that
were
closing
when I took office are working
double-shift now,” he said. “The
auto industry has record sales. I
think I’ve earned some credibility
here. Manufacturing jobs have
grown at the fastest rate since the
’90s — when another Clinton was
president. I think we’ve earned
some credibility here. So when I tell
you that Donald Trump is not the
guy who’s going to look out for you,
you need to listen.”
He charged that in contrast
to Clinton, Trump is unfit and
unqualified for the presidency
because
of
his
temperament,
business reputation and rhetoric
about several groups.
“Donald
Trump
is
temperamentally
unfit
to
be
Commander-in-Chief,”
he
said.
“He’s unqualified to be America’s
chief executive. He brags that he’s
a business guy. But we’ve got a lot
of businessmen and women who
succeed without stiffing small
businesses and workers. Once
they’ve already done work for you,
and then suddenly you don’t pay
them?”
LSA senior Jesse Dorbian, who
said he came to the event to hear
Obama campaign for Clinton, noted
that he appreciated hearing about
Hillary Clinton’s economic work.
“What stood out for me most
was the fact that Hillary Clinton
is willing to help out people in
need and help people get to the
top, instead of Donald Trump just
favoring himself,” he said.
Hofer said she thought both
Obama’s presence and the emphasis
on his legacy would be a boost in
Ann Arbor, but that the Clinton
campaign should still be concerned
about student turnout.
“I think people are still not as
enthusiastic as they need to be,” she
said.
Taleb echoed Hofer’s sentiments.
“Clinton for a while had a
problem connecting with young
people, including me, and I’m
voting for her tomorrow,” he said.
“Having (Obama) here in Ann
Arbor to boost that millennial vote
was really important.”
Nonetheless, for at least some
people in line Monday, whether
or not Clinton garners the kind of
enthusiasm generated by Obama
won’t be all that matters as they
head to the polls on Election Day.
“Obama was special in a lot
of ways, but Hillary Clinton …
thinking about the fact that I have
the privilege of voting for a woman
for president, like right now, that
makes me want to cry,” Lanseur
said. “I don’t need to be excited
about it. It’s way bigger than that
for me.”
Tuesday, Democrats will find
out if it’s the kind of revolution
millennials statewide are ready to
be a part of.
RALLY
From Page 1
putting Democratic presidential
nominee Hillary Clinton at about
three points ahead of Republican
presidential
nominee
Donald
Trump.
At the same time, polls in the
2012 election also suggested a
narrowing lead between Obama
and former Republican nominee
Mitt Romney ahead of the election.
Despite being within five points of
Romney in the weeks before the
election, Obama won the state by a
9.5 point margin.
Along
with
Obama,
other
Democratic
politicians
and
candidates spoke at the rally,
including Larry Deitch (D) and
Denise Ilitch (D), candidates for
the University’s Board of Regents,
as well as Reps. Debbie Dingell (D–
Mich.), Brenda Lawrence (–Mich.),
Sandy Levin (D–Mich.) and Sen.
Gary Peters (D–Mich.).
Republicans, too, have realized
the potential Trump has to turn
Michigan red. The candidate has
spent a significant amount of time
in the state in the days leading up
to the election. In the past week,
he has made two stops in the state,
with his running mate Gov. Mike
Pence (R–Ind.) making three.
There have been several other
stops in the state by his children
Ivanka, Eric and Donald Trump Jr.
On Monday, both Clinton and
Trump visited Grand Rapids,
Mich. on their last day on the
campaign trail, while Obama
aimed to get out the vote at the
University.
But regardless of the tight polls
and uptick in visits, the likelihood
of anything a GOP win remains
low, according to pollsters and
experts.
The
FiveThirtyEight
election
forecast,
created
by
combining polls from across the
country with historical trends,
Monday night put Clinton with a
78.1 percent chance of winning the
state.
Political Science Prof. Vincent
Hutchings, who is an expert in
voting behavior and elections, said
though polls are tight currently,
there is a low likelihood that
Trump will pull through.
“I doubt it will be a blowout here
in Michigan, but I nevertheless
expect the Democrats to win here
as they have for the last several
presidential elections,” Hutchings
said. “I understand why Trump
is trying to flip the state, and why
Democrats are trying to counter
those efforts, but it seems to me
that there’s a very low probability
that the state will go Republican
this year.”
Aaron Kall, the University’s
director of debate and an election
expert, estimated that Democrats
have a 75 percent chance of
winning the state of Michigan.
“Early
voting
has
now
concluded in several battleground
states, so it makes sense for Clinton
to spend much of her Sunday and
Monday in states where a plurality
of the voters won’t vote until
Tuesday,” Kall said. “These are
the places she should be making
her closing argument in person.
Democratic officials have said
off the record they are concerned
about Michigan, but they are likely
saying this to make sure voters
remain enthusiastic and actually
show up at the polls on Tuesday.”
Kall said he foresees the Clinton
campaign strategy as focused on
holding Michigan, Pennsylvania
and Wisconsin, so there is no way
for Trump to win — even if he were
to win traditional swing states.
Coming to Ann Arbor and the
University of Michigan at this
point in the race is particularly
notable in itself. The most recent
Michigan Daily poll of students
for a three-way race with Clinton,
Trump and “other” put Clinton as
the winner by a broad margin of 87
percent to 13 percent in support of
Trump.
Volunteers of all parties on
campus — including heavy efforts
from the Democrats in particular
— have also emphasized the
student vote. Michigan Daily
polling data shows 93 percent of
students are registered to vote,
though
students
on
average
usually turn out in lower numbers.
Hutchings said the appeal to
college students is mixed because
while younger people vote at
lower rates, on average people
who are more educated vote at
higher rates.
“The student vote has some
significance especially for the
Democrats,”
Hutchings
said.
“Historically,
younger
people
are less likely to vote but turnout
is also associated with high
education. So, college students
will turn out relative to young
people without a college education
and this year this demographic is
trending Democratic.”
Hutchings said for Clinton,
where every little bit counts, these
student votes could mean a lot
overall.
Kall
reiterated
his
point
that Democrats may be more
interested in energizing the young
population through visits like
Obama’s, rather than concerned
about losing the state as a whole.
“The
millennial
vote
is
becoming crucial to the overall
election,” Kall said. “These voters
overwhelmingly favor Clinton,
but are sometimes apathetic about
voting.”
During his remarks Monday,
however, the president largely
stuck to local to state issues rather
than student issues.
He devoted a lot of time to
addressing
the
concerns
of
Michigan voters — not just
students.
PARTY
From Page 1
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