Podcast: Trump's Blue-Collar Appeal in Michigan
Factory employees and other working-class voters have long been a key political constituency in Midwest states like Michigan. And they had been reliable Democrats for years: until Donald Trump’s unexpectedly victorious presidential campaign in 2016, which included wins in “Blue Wall” states of Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.
I traveled to Michigan earlier this month for the latest episode of “Chasing the Base,” a podcast that I’m hosting for The Wall Street Journal. You can find the episode here, or you can subscribe to the Journal’s “What’s News” podcast to get new episodes in the feed on your iPhone or Spotify. (My nine-year-old, ignoring years of my printed articles, was sooo proud to say, “Dad! You’re on SPOTIFY!”)
Joe Biden flipped those three states back to the Democratic column in 2020, but there’s data to suggest that Trump’s appeal to blue-collar, mostly white, voters has endured. To understand it I spoke with auto workers, experts and retirees about their thinking.
“Michigan is essentially a lunch-bucket, blue-collar state,” John Sellek, a veteran political consultant, told me. “He had a touch of celebrity that was accessible to regular people—and no offense to my fellow Michiganians, we don't have a lot of celebrities.”
One dynamic I encountered was a split among Republicans in Michigan. You can see it in some of the pictures captured by Brittany Greeson, and arranged in this photo essay that my colleague Ariel Zambelich and I put together. Trump brought a bunch of new people into the party, but they didn't get along with the folks who'd been running it before. There's been a fight going on about who leads the state party which includes a contested vote, a dispute with the Republican National Committee and a lawsuit.
It's clear to me that Trump's blue-collar base is still with him, and that's a big reason his many challengers haven't been able to knock him off his track to the nomination. (Trump won a convincing victory this weekendin South Carolina, the home state of his remaining rival Nikki Haley.) The people we spoke with talked a bit about his economic policies, but a lot about his personality. They identify with him because they said he sees them and hears them in a way that no other candidate has in a long time. What's more, these voters now expect the same policies and demeanor from other Republicans that they got from Trump.
And for some, he’s the only game in town.
“I'm not a Republican,” Nelson Westrick, an auto worker, told me. “I’m a Trump supporter, America First candidate guy. I would not just check the R box by any means. If Trump's not the candidate, I won't vote.”
TRIP NOTES:
++ One of the people we interviewed works at Ford’s River Rouge plant, a century-old behemoth facility that was designed by Henry Ford to receive raw iron ore and spit out automobiles. It still makes about 1,000 vehicles a day, though the number of employees is a small fraction of the 100,000 people who worked their daily at its peak. You can take a tour, which is awesome.
++ I also rode the People Mover, which brought me more joy than I think I can describe in words. It was pretty useless as public transportation but completely delightful as an urban attraction. The train runs counter-clockwise around downtown. It’s fare free for 2024, but I like to think that the $45 parking ticket that I got while waiting for the train to come (no digital indicators of when it will arrive) did more than cover the cost.
++ If you’re a sucker for Art Deco architecture (like me), then Detroit has some real gems. I visited the Guardian Building downtown and the Fisher Building on Grand Avenue. I highly recommend both.
THE QUESTION: While in Michigan I ate a couple of Coneys. It’s a hot dog with what trio of fixins?
Know the answer? Drop me a line at jimmy.vielkind@gmail.com. Or just write with thoughts, feedback or to say hi.
THE LAST ANSWER: Facebook started on the campus of Harvard University.