Former President Donald Trump on Thursday warned that the country would end up “like Detroit” if Vice President Kamala Harris is elected, his latest jab at an urban center in a swing state that he hopes to win next month.
In remarks laying out his vision for the auto industry at the Detroit Economic Club, Trump said, “Our whole country will end up being like Detroit if (Harris is) your president. You’re going to have a mess on your hands.”
He claimed Harris “destroyed” San Francisco, and later added, “We’re not going to let her do that to this country. We’re not gonna let it happen.”
Trump also compared the largest city in the battleground state to a developing nation while speaking, accusing China of abusing its developing nation status in international trade.
“We’re a developing nation too. Just take a look at Detroit,” he said, calling the city a “developing area … hell of a lot more than most places in China.”
While Detroit remains severely reduced in size and economic strength from its early 20th century heyday, its recovery from bankruptcy proceedings in 2013 and the continued growth of the city’s downtown area is a point of pride for Detroiters and many leaders in Michigan. On the day that Trump was speaking in the city, thousands of fans were flocking to Detroit for a playoff baseball game and the opening game of the season for the Detroit Red Wings. The city grew in population for the first time since 1957 between July 2022 and July 2023, the city government announced earlier this year.