President Trump, fresh off what he claims was vindication in the special counsel’s Russia investigation, told supporters tonight in Michigan that “after three years of lies and smears and slander, the Russia hoax is finally dead.”
“The collusion delusion is over,” he said. “This was nothing more than a sinister effort to undermine our historic election victory.”
In his first rally since the end of the 22-month investigation, Trump lashed out at a wide-ranging list of familiar targets: Representative Adam Schiff, Democrat of California and the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, the elites and, of course, the “fake news media,” which he accused of propagating the “hoax” of his collusion with Russia.
In vilifying his opponents, Trump was not troubled by the fact that the 300-plus-page report by Robert Mueller, the special counsel, has yet to be released, or that Attorney General William Barr, in his summary of Mueller’s findings, stipulated that the report did not exonerate the president, even if it did not find him guilty of conspiracy or of obstructing justice.
“It’s interesting,” Trump said. “Robert Mueller was a god to the Democrats. He was a god to them until he said ‘no collusion.’ They don’t like him so much now.”
Grand Rapids holds special meaning for Trump, as the site of his final campaign rally before his upset victory in 2016.
He won Michigan by fewer than 11,000 votes — two-tenths of 1 percent — the first Republican to do since 1984.
It was one of three Midwestern states — along with Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — that cemented his victory over his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton.
The timing of the rally so soon after Barr’s disclosures has prompted greater-than-usual concerns about security, given Trump’s habit of stirring up the crowd and heaping abuse on reporters.
At his last rally in El Paso, a member of the audience assaulted a BBC cameraman.
The signs of tighter security in Grand Rapids included more visible security personnel and sturdier barriers between the press and the audience.
Trump has long savored his victory in Michigan.
But the state could be more of an uphill struggle in 2020. Democrats made significant gains in the 2018 midterm elections, including winning the governorship.
General Motors, one of Michigan’s key employers, has laid off workers, despite Trump’s efforts to pressure the carmaker to expand manufacturing in the United States.
He also face headwinds in winning congressional passage of the retooled version of the North American Free Trade Agreement, which he has promoted as benefiting workers in Michigan.
The current RealClearPolitics polling average, based on two recent Michigan surveys, shows Trump trailing several potential Democratic opponents — one by double digits.
In a hypothetical general election race against former Vice President Joe Biden, the RCP average put Trump behind in Michigan by 10.5 points.
He also trailed Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont by 8 points, Kamala Harris of California by 3.5 points and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts by 2.5 points.
Inside the arena, however, Trump’s supporters basked in the glow of the president’s claims of vindication and expressed indignation on his behalf at the multiple investigations into him and his administration.