(Photo AP)
GASTONIA, NORTH CAROLINA— Donald Trump claims he will be the “protector” of women, regardless of their feelings on the matter.
He has campaigned alongside men who use sexist and crude language and has voiced concern about the possibility of wives voting differently from their husbands.
The former Republican president also suggested that Democrat Kamala Harris, who seeks to become the first woman elected to the White House, would become “overwhelmed” and “melt down” when confronted by tough male authoritarian leaders.
In the closing days of his campaign, Trump has maintained a gendered perspective that many critics deem outdated and paternalistic, even as he admits that some of his language has landed him in “so much trouble” with a key demographic of voters.
Trump and some of his notable allies have perpetuated explicit sexism.
Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, speaking at an event with the Republican nominee, compared Trump to an angry father giving tough love to a “bad little girl” who, in Carlson's view, needed a “vigorous spanking.”
Charlie Kirk, the founder of the conservative youth organization Turning Point, which is significantly involved in the campaign's get-out-the-vote efforts, has stated that any man who votes against Trump is “not a man.” He also remarked that wives who secretly support Harris “undermine their husbands,” referring to men who likely work tirelessly to ensure their partners can enjoy a comfortable life and support the family.
On Saturday night, Trump chuckled at a crude joke about Harris, just days after a speaker at his Madison Square Garden rally suggested the vice president resembled a prostitute under the control of "pimp handlers." While reiterating his unsubstantiated claim that Harris lied about working at McDonald's in her youth, someone from the audience shouted, "She worked on the corner."
Trump laughed, glanced around, and pointed to a section of the crowd.
“This place is amazing,” he declared to cheers. “Just remember, it’s others saying it, not me.”
Since Harris entered the race in July, Trump has struggled with a significant gender gap. Surveys indicate that women are substantially more likely to support Harris than Trump, with some polls showing a double-digit margin.
This gap could be critical in what both campaigns anticipate will be an extremely close election on Tuesday.
Women typically vote at higher rates than men, comprising 53% of the electorate in 2020, according to AP VoteCast. Among the nearly 67.2 million Americans who have already voted, approximately 53% are women, compared to 44% men, as reported by TargetSmart, a political data firm.
“This isn't the time for them to become overly masculine with their bromance,” said Nikki Haley, who competed against Trump for the GOP nomination this year, in a recent Fox News interview. “Women will vote. They care about how they're spoken to and the issues at hand.”
Despite her willingness to campaign alongside him, Trump has not joined Haley on the campaign trail; she served as U.N. ambassador during his administration.
Trump has been actively seeking the support of men, particularly focusing on younger demographics. His team has dedicated months to engaging with them through a series of interviews on popular male-oriented podcasts and by appearing at football games and mixed martial arts events. The campaign has been characterized by a strong focus on machismo, as showcased when former pro wrestler Hulk Hogan tore off his shirt while taking the stage at the Republican National Convention and again during the Madison Square Garden rally.
The song “It’s A Man’s Man’s Man’s World” frequently plays at Trump’s events.
Trump was anticipated to encounter difficulties with women this year, particularly after appointing three justices to the Supreme Court who voted to overturn Roe v. Wade, thereby ending the constitutionally protected right to abortion and triggering a wave of restrictions in Republican-led states.
However, his attempts to regain the support of women have often fallen flat.
While speaking on Saturday in Gastonia, North Carolina, at the first of nearly a dozen rallies during the campaign's final weekend, Trump acknowledged the backlash he has received for claiming he would “protect” women as president. Despite this, he continued to assert the statement, insisting that women love him and that he was correct.
“I believe that women need to be protected. Men, children—everyone needs protection. But women, especially in suburban areas, need to feel safe,” he stated. “When you're home alone and a monster who has been released from prison—someone with six charges for murdering six different people—breaks in, I think you'd prefer to have Trump.”
Trump's campaign thinks that emphasizing crime and illegal immigration will resonate with “security moms.” At his rallies, he has shared stories of mothers whose children were killed by individuals living in the country illegally. One such story is that of Alexis Nungaray, whose 12-year-old daughter, Jocelyn, was murdered by two suspected Venezuelan gang members.
The campaign also believes that Trump’s frequent criticism of transgender rights resonates with his audience.
In Salem, Virginia, on Saturday, Trump brought female athletes from Roanoke College to the stage, referencing a transgender woman who had requested but later withdrew her application to join the women’s swimming team.
Karoline Leavitt, a spokesperson for the Trump campaign, defended his stance, stating, “Women deserve a President who will secure our nation’s borders, remove violent criminals from our neighborhoods, and build an economy that helps our families thrive—and that’s exactly what President Trump will do.”
Attendees at his rallies expressed their appreciation for Trump’s promise to be a “protector.”
“I want protection. We all do, right? We don’t want to feel unsafe,” said Kim Saunders, 52, a small business owner from Williamsburg, Virginia. “It’s a scary feeling. So, for me, it feels reassuring to have someone, especially a man, to protect me.”
She admitted she struggles to understand why women would support Harris, but believes men are attracted to Trump because “he is that alpha male. I grew up with a dad who was an alpha male, and I appreciate that.”
Meanwhile, Harris has highlighted Trump’s comments in her speeches and on social media, aiming to address her side of the gender gap. She has appeared on podcasts and conducted interviews specifically focusing on Black men, a demographic that traditionally supports Democrats, where Trump seems to be gaining traction. In a CNN interview on Saturday, she was asked whether she thinks women will make a difference in this election.
“I believe all Americans are going to make the difference. I intend to be a president for all Americans,” she responded.
Trump pushed back against a comment from Mark Cuban, a top Harris supporter, suggesting that Trump does not surround himself with strong, intelligent women. Trump pointed out that he has hired women to lead both his 2016 and 2024 campaigns.
However, while attempting to undermine Harris, the first woman elected as vice president, Trump has frequently resorted to gendered language. “She certainly can’t handle (Russian President Vladimir) Putin or President Xi of China. She’ll get overwhelmed, melt down, and millions of people will die,” he said on Saturday.
That night, he awkwardly reiterated his claim of being the “father of fertilization,” falsely taking credit for a fertility procedure that was briefly banned in Alabama by a state Supreme Court ruling following the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
At recent rallies, Trump, who has been found liable for sexual assault and has faced accusations from over two dozen women of sexual misconduct, commented on female supporters in the audience, lamenting that he can no longer call them beautiful.
“You have to be very careful with everything you say. You know, like there are some women who are very beautiful in the audience. I would never say that. If I said they were beautiful, that would be the end of my political career,” Trump stated.
No comments:
Post a Comment