For Trump, city where 'bad things happen' looms large

When President Donald Trump told world that “b things happen in Philelphia,” it was, in part, a blunt assessment of his party's struggles in nation's sixth-most populous city.

For deces, Philelphia has been cornerstone of Democratic victories in battleground state — producing Democratic margins so massive that winning statewide has been a longshot for most Republican presidential candidates.

But it's a longshot Trump pulled off in 2016 and is trying to repeat again. His debate st disdain for City of Brorly Love — which quickly inspired memes and T-shirts — underscored his campaign's months-long effort to fight blue tide that starts in city.

That fight has involved court challenges and statehouse wrangling over mail-in voting and poll watching, efforts Democrats characterize as voter suppression.

And it came as Trump openly declared, citing evidence, that only way he can lose Pennsylvania to former Vice President Joe Biden is through a massive fraud engineered by Democrats in city of 1.6 million.

But Trump can’t change basic political math in state: one in eight registered voters live in Philelphia, a city that keeps delivering increasingly large Democratic margins, routinely provides one in five votes for Democratic presidential candidates and is spurring a leftward drift in heavily populated suburbs around it.

“Trump is right, ‘b things happen in Philelphia,’ especially for him,” Philelphia’s Democratic Party chair, Bob Bry, said. “And b things are going to happen for him in Philelphia on Election Day.”

Recent polls show Trump and Biden in a competitive race in Pennsylvania, or Biden ahe by single-digits in a state Trump won by just over 44,000 votes — less than a percent point — in 2016.

Trump’s victory was first by a Republican presidential candidate since 1988, and it shocked Pennsylvania Democrats to core.

In Philelphia, Biden's campaign is putting a heavy emphasis on turning out Black and Lati voters and is bringing in former President Barack Obama to campaign re. Trump's campaign is making its own appeal to Black and Lati voters and hoping for even better results with his white, working-class base.

Bry predicted Philelphia will carry rest of Pennsylvania and produce a bigger margin of victory for Biden than 475,000 it produced for Hillary Clinton in 2016. That gap was slightly smaller than historic margins Obama h in 2008 and 2012.

Biden campaign has several “voter activation” centers around city, t to mention Biden's campaign hequarters.

Trump's campaign, meanwhile, opened offices in heavily Black west Philelphia and in heavily white rast Philelphia.

Thanks to a year-old state law that greatly expanded mail-in voting, people w have weeks to vote and turut is brisk at newly opened election offices around city where voters can fill out and cast ballots.

That is giving hope to Philelphia Democrats, after city's predominantly Black wards did t turn out as strongly in 2016 for Clinton as y did for Obama, including some that delivered 10% fewer votes.

“ line went around block,” state Rep. Chris Rabb, whose district is 70% Black, said of a newly opened election office re. “It was thing that I've seen since 2008 and I’ve worked polls for 16 years w.”

In a city that is 42% Black, belief that Trump has fueled a racist surge is widely held.

Breaking up concrete on a contracting job at a west Philelphia rowhouse this week, Dexter Ayres, a lifelong Democrat, said he alrey voted for Biden in hopes of improving how Black people are treated in America.

Some of his friends are skeptical that voting will change anything. Ayres, who is Black, mitted that makes him wonder, “Wow, why did I vote?”

"But n I look at it like: ‘Well, maybe my vote will make a difference,’" Ayres said. “I’m just praying and leaving it in God’s hands.”

Sitting on her front porch in west Philelphia this week, Latoya Ratcliff, a Democrat, said she will vote for Biden, and sees more enthusiasm in her neighborhood to vote out Trump than in 2016 to vote for Hillary Clinton.

defining issue for Ratcliff, who is Black, is racism.

“y understand a little more about getting out and getting that vote out," said Ratcliff, 39.

In rast Philelphia, Trump saw unexpectedly strong support from an area with a reputation for being home to unionized building tres members, police officers and firefighters. Republicans say y w expect even stronger support for Trump re.

“Back Blue” yard signs and thin-blue-line flags are everywhere in some neighborhoods, city’s police union endorsed Trump again and city’s firefighters and paramedics union also endorsed him, breaking with its international association’s endorsement of Biden.

Leaving his rast Philelphia home to go shopping recently, lifelong Democrat Joe Dowling said he will vote for Trump after backing Clinton four years ago. issue that changed his mind, he said, has been violence in wake of George Floyd's death and a backlash against police.

“It’s out of control,” said Dowling, 60, who is white. “re’s reason for anybody to disrespect police.”

Democrats ackwledge that y slipped in rast Philelphia in 2016 — swing was about 11,000 voters from 2012.

Still, area snapped back for Democrats in 2018 and U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle, who represents it in Congress, said he expects Biden to do better re than Clinton.

He recalled a paper-shredding event his office last fall, attended by hundreds in parking lot of plumbers’ union office in rast Philelphia.

“I was surprised by animus toward Trump, people unsolicited saying, ‘Gotta get him out of re, he’s a disaster,’” said Boyle, a Democrat. “And it was different. I wasn’t hearing that a few years earlier.”

Stephen Lomas, a long-time registered Republican who lives between two Trump supporters in rast Philelphia, said he will vote for Biden.

Lomas, 84, who is white, said Trump and members of his ministration “are tearing down our belief in system. ... y’re out-and-out crooks. y’re almost traitors to our Constitution.”

Besides mail-in voting, ar thing that is different in this presidential election is a network of allied liberal issues and community groups in Philelphia, organizers say, with a long-term focus on reaching people unlikely to vote in predominantly Black and Lati neighborhoods.

Briheem Douglas, vice president of Unite Here Local 274, a union of casi, food service and hotel workers that supports Biden, said he is canvassing harder than ever before.

Douglas, 36, tells a personal story to everyone he meets who isn't planning to vote: He is caring for infant child of his 21-year-old niece, Brianna, who died in September from coronvavirus.

“So I’m laser-focused on canvassing more than in 2016,” Douglas said.

This story has t been edited by www.republicworld.com and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.