MILWAUKEE, WI (WTAQ) – President Donald Trump is stopping in Milwaukee to rally supporters Tuesday night, but is there more to the event than a simple update on current events and policy?
Trump supporters will fill Panther Arena to hear the president speak, and plenty of others are surely finding ways to tune in. Some experts say you almost have to pay attention during rallies because the president can be a bit unpredictable.
“Whether he’s intending on making a major policy statement or not, you have to watch because you can never anticipate what’s going to be said or done at these meetings,” says UW-Oshkosh Political Science Professor Jim Simmons.
The President is expected to use the rally as a campaign reminder of his accomplishments during his first term in office and a chance to lay out his vision for the next four years.
“Everything he’s doing now is a campaign stop. In fact, his public presentations like this have always been about the campaign. The president has been running for reelection since the results of the election in 2016,” Simmons says.
Simmons also believes it is a move to counter the Democratic debate in Iowa, which hits the airwaves at the same time Trump takes the stage.
“I’m sure the president is using this as one of his early campaign stops to draw away attention from what the Democrats were saying in Iowa,” Simmons tells WTAQ News, “The president really can’t stand any other event that draws attention away from himself. He has that need to be the focus.”
Simmons commends the competitive campaign chess move so early in the election year. He believes there will be a lot of political action on both sides working to sway the massive swing state.
“Trump will not only be in Wisconsin a number of times but as the campaign rolls out – you can expect both parties,” Simmons says.
Candidates on the Democratic side are likely to heavily cover Wisconsin after Hillary Clinton’s loss here in 2016.
