Legal troubles don't dampen Trump enthusiasm as he visits Michigan

Donald Trump supporters were out in force in Saginaw County Wednesday, lining up for hundreds of yards outside a hanger at MBS International Airport to see the former president.

“My wife really wanted to see him and it’s kind of a once in a lifetime chance to see a president, or a former president,” said Joe LaCasse, 63, of Flushing, who drove about 50 minutes and arrived early to get in line. He was wearing a T-shirt with a mugshot of Trump that read “Wanted for President.”

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LaCasse is a retired UAW member who worked for 26 years for General Motors in Flint. He’s voted for Trump three times, in two general elections and one primary, and he intends to for him again in November.

He said he’s unbothered by Trump’s current legal troubles, as evidenced by his T-shirt.

“I haven’t seen any solid evidence,” LaCasse said. “I think they’re just trying to tie him down.”LaCasse acknowledged Trump could get on his nerves.

“Some of those Tweets in the middle of the night were a bit much, but he says what he thinks,” he said.

Those weren’t enough to cost Trump LaCasse’s support, who hopes Trump wins to improve the economy and tighten the border.

His wife, Dianne LaCasse, 65, echoed her husband’s discomfort with Trump’s former Tweets, but said the economy was her top priority.

“I was able to go and buy groceries for my whole family for about 200 bucks,” she said. “Now it’s like $400-500. Meat is outrageous and we try to supplement with venison.”

She said her husband and other family members hunt deer on family property but even the deer are getting harder to find.

Trump’s Michigan visit was timed for Wednesday, when he’s not required to be in court for a trial on charges he paid hush money to a former porn performer. His supporters are aware of the cases against him but several insist they are politically motivated. Few had followed news last week that he was named an unindicted co-conspirator in a Michigan case that charges his supporters with being false electors.

The visit had all the trademarks of his previous stops in Michigan, including vendors hawking Trump hats, T-shirts and flags. Food trucks sold tacos and corn dogs but the crowd was large enough to slow down the internet service, crashing credit card readers.

Unlike his last visit when windchill factors dropped below zero, Wednesday’s visit came under sunny skies and temperatures in the 70s.

A stiff breeze had flags fluttering loud enough to compete with the sound of country music playing over loudspeakers. Petition gatherers sought voter signatures for Ax the Tax, a measure to repeal property taxes in Michigan and a dozen portable toilets had their doors tagged with placards seeking election workers.

A QR code on the placards took visitors to Protect the Vote, a group recruiting Republican poll challengers.

Tegan Kogler, 21, lives in Brighton and attends Northwood University in Midland, about a 20-minute ride from the site of Trump’s visit. He and three classmates drove over to get in line.

Kogler is graduating next year with a degree in supply chain management. He said Trump will be better for the economy.

“I like that he’s not afraid to say what’s wrong with the country,” Kogler said. “I’ve never met anyone in my entire life that’s been super supportive of Biden. Maybe they’re closeted, I know I would be.”

Kogler said he believes Trump will win a landslide and dismissed his legal troubles as politically motivated.

“I think he’s going to pass those things with flying colors,” he said.

His roommate Gavin Wisniewski, is also 21 and from Brighton. He’s studying marketing communications.

“America is still the greatest country on earth and Donald Trump represents it as well as anyone,” Wisniewski said.He hopes Trump wins and does more to enforce the border.

The border is an important issue for Jordan Smith, 38, of Saginaw, who owns a notary and mortgage business.Smith is mixed race but says he identifies “as a Black American or just an American.”

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Smith is a lifelong Democrat and said that through a family connection, he got to meet President Biden when he visited Saginaw in March. He wasn’t awed by Biden, but wanted to hear him out.

He said that’s what brought him to the Trump rally as well.

“I want to hear what he has to say, I don’t want soundbites,” Smith said.

Smith said that he hasn’t followed Trump’s legal troubles closely enough to say whether he thinks crimes were committed but he said he’s suspicious of judges, who can become arrogant.

Smith said he hasn’t decided how he’ll vote in November, but he thinks Trump will win more Black votes in this election than he did in the last one. Biden hasn’t improved life for Black people, Smith said.

“There was record turnout last time for Biden,” Smith said. “People registered, got to the polls, voted and then they got nothing. He is losing support from Blacks because they feel like they’ve been taken advantage of. It’s voter remorse.”

The crowd at the rally was in good spirits, including two protestors who stood guard outside the entrance.Jake Malacos, 44, of Troy, works in a laboratory. He grew up in Saginaw and drove home to be at the Trump rally. He had a whiteboard hung over his stomach from suspenders around his neck. He used markers to change the message frequently as the crowd passed.

One iteration said: “Remember when Trump promised to repeal Obamacare?” Another read: “Remember when Trump invited the Taliban to the White House?”

Asked why he came, Malacos said: “My dislike of Donald Trump. He’s a lifelong conman.”

Malacos said many of his friends, including a group of buddies he ice fishes with each winter, are Trump supporters.

“I don’t think I’ve lost any friendships over politics; I may have strained a few,” he said. “I don’t mind people who trash talk Joe Biden but I’ll probably vote for him.”

Malacos said he saw his sister-in-law in line to see Trump and she came over and hugged him.

Malacos’ high school classmate, David McKinstry, 44, still lives in Saginaw and works in construction. He tagged along wearing a sign that read “Trump sucks, but his supporters are alright.”

He said being outnumbered by thousands to one was “quasi-empowering.” He said he wasn’t super interested in politics but after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, he felt he had to get involved to prevent something that could have been far more scary.

He described Saginaw County as socially conservative with a large union presence that makes it politically split.

“Most people I know are Trump supporters, they’re still good people,” he said. “I’m not fond of Biden, but I can’t stand Trump.”

McKinstry said he can’t stand Trump but he’s not fond of Biden either. He said he’s likely to leave the presidential line blank when he casts his ballot.

Contact John Wisely at jwisely@freepress.com.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Trump supporters pack airport hanger for visit