Trump targets low-turnout MAGA voters with campaign stops in deep-red districts: Byron York

Washington Examiner chief political correspondent Byron York explained why President Donald Trump has been so prominent on the campaign trail ahead of midterm elections.“The reason that Trump is going to some of these deep-red areas, he appears in Sioux City, Iowa, a congressional district he won by 31 points in [2024], Port Huron, Michigan, won that one by 32 points in [2024],” York said Monday on Fox News’s Special Report With Bret Baier. “Republicans believe there are a lot of MAGA voters who don’t get out to the polls if Trump’s not on the ballot.”York said Trump’s MAGA base didn’t fully turn out in 2020 or 2022 for the midterm elections, but did come out in full force for the president in the 2024 elections. Trump’s tactic in these deep-red districts is to appeal to his supporters in hopes it’ll boost statewide races, York added. “So, Trump says, ‘Pretend I’m on the ballot,’” York said. “A lot of people have mocked him for doing that. That’s a very calculated line, looking for people who wouldn’t vote unless he’s on the ballot.” Meanwhile, the United States is not the only country with major elections coming up. On Tuesday, Israel is holding its first election since the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks by Hamas. York has expressed skepticism about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s chances at reelection amid conflicts in Gaza and Iran.“And I’ve wondered almost from the beginning when there was going to be some kind of moment of accountability from him,” York said.THE LOGIC BEHIND TRUMP’S ‘PRETEND I’M ON THE BALLOT’ APPEALYork compared Israel’s response to the Oct. 7 attacks with the U.S. response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. While the U.S. looked into how the attacks unfolded and tightened up security, Israel’s focus has been on Hamas, York said.“There’s been a lot of controversy about having some sort of investigative commission after the lapses of Oct. 6,” York said. “Obviously, the first order of business was to go after Hamas, but at some point, they have to look into how the lapses in security that made that attack even worse than it might have been.”