During a Fox News town hall hosted by Sean Hannity, former president Donald Trump told the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania crowd that there's no way they can or should vote for Kamala Harris.
"Even if you don't like me," he said. "You can sit there and say 'I can't stand that guy, but there's no way I'm gonna vote for her!"
The statement comes at a pivotal moment in the race. Pennsylvania is seen by both his and Vice President Kamala Harris's campaign as a must-win state. The Republican candidate hammered Kamala Harris on the issue of fracking, which she had claimed in 2020 that she opposed - her campaign has since walked that back, though Harris herself has been silent on the issue.
Trump's message to Pennsylvania voters:
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) September 5, 2024
"You can't take the chance! You have no choice! You've gotta vote for me! Even if you don't like me! You can sit there and say 'I can't stand that guy, but there's NO WAY I'm gonna vote for her!'" pic.twitter.com/LRZIbwzRGj
"It's your biggest business," Trump said about fracking. "And you get a big... a majority of your income from fracking. And you have somebody who's not going to allow fracking. She's not going to allow it. You can't take the chance. You have no choice! You've gotta vote for me!"
The audience seemed tailor-made for the issue of fracking. When Trump mentioned that she wanted to ban fracking, they reacted strongly.
TRUMP on Kamala's FRACKING flip-flop:
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) September 5, 2024
"She wants no fracking in Pennsylvania!"
*BOOS*
"She said it 100 times!" pic.twitter.com/DJ1iu1Tkh2
It's just one of a handful of issues surrounding the American economy that the former president intends to hammer home in the weeks leading up to the election. For blue collar workers in Pennsylvania, who stand to gain from expanded domestic energy production, Trump's appeal makes sense.
Recent polling shows that Pennsylvanians are, at best, split between the two candidates. It's even more surprising when you look at recent elections in the state - which has several Democrats who have won statewide in recent years. If Harris is struggling there, that does not bode well for her in other Midwest, Rust Belt states.
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