Daniel DePetris

Donald Trump is running out of time

Trump supporters at a rally in Johnstown, Pennsylvania last night (Photo by Jeff Swensen/Getty Images)

Donald Trump was bewildered, frustrated, and downright exasperated. Addressing a crowd of red-hatted, hard-core MAGA supporters last night in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, the president wondered aloud how it was even possible he could be defeated by Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden. ‘I’m running against the single worst candidate in the history of presidential politics, and you know what that does?’ Mr Trump surmised. ‘That puts more pressure on me. Can you imagine if you lose to a guy like this? It’s unbelievable.’

Unfortunately for Trump, losing to the former vice president is not only believable but exceedingly likely based on the direction the polls are going. Trump is on the defensive in nearly every battleground state he won four years ago, a reality that is stretching his campaign resources and his patience. 

This time four years ago, the celebrity businessman was seven points behind Hillary Clinton

With a little less than three weeks before Americans head to voting stations across the country (millions have already voted by mail), Trump is down five points in Florida, seven in Wisconsin, and seven in Michigan. States like Arizona and Georgia that were once assumed to be solid Republican terrain are now increasingly in Biden’s reach. Indeed, it wouldn’t be surprising if Americans woke up the morning after election day to find every battleground state in Biden’s column. It’s plausible, although unlikely, that the 2020 presidential election could be the most lopsided since the contest between George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton 28 years ago.

Trump, fresh out of the hospital after nursing a coronavirus infection, will be spending the next three weeks on the campaign trail doing everything he can to avoid becoming the first president in nearly 30 years to vacate the White House after one term.

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Written by
Daniel DePetris

Daniel DePetris is a fellow at Defense Priorities, a syndicated foreign affairs columnist at the Chicago Tribune and a foreign affairs writer for Newsweek.

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