Donald Trump Jr. showed up in Kentucky for an event with unpopular Gov. Matt Bevin, and they were met with a virtually empty arena in Kentucky coal country.
Here is the picture:
Donald Trump Jr. touts Bevin to a mostly-empty arena in Kentucky coal countryhttps://t.co/mc0JRsCvBB pic.twitter.com/OqppfTrrfH
— Bluegrass Politics (@BGPolitics) August 29, 2019
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The Lexington Herald Ledger reported:
Donald Trump Jr. spoke to a mostly-empty arena in Pikeville Thursday afternoon, hoping to muster support within a historically Democratic county for the reelection of Republican Gov. Matt Bevin.
Like much of Eastern Kentucky, Pike County has long been a Democratic stronghold, but swung to the right during the last presidential election in a landslide victory for President Donald Trump.
Matt Bevin is wildly unpopular in Kentucky. Bevin is the least popular governor in the country, with a 32% approval rating and a 56% disapproval rating. Gov. Bevin gets booed in public on a regular basis. Earlier this year, Bevin was booed at a Hillbilly Days event in the state.
The fact that Donald Trump Jr. couldn’t draw anything resembling a crowd is a strong statement about the star power of the Trumps and the state of the Republican Party. The message is that struggling Republicans shouldn’t count on the Trump name alone to ride in and save them. The Trump political brand is taking a hit with the base of the party, and when Donald Trump Jr. can’t draw a crowd in Kentucky, where his father maintains a positive approval rating, that is danger sign for Republicans everywhere in 2020.
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Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
