Jun 7, 2018 - Politics & Policy

The Trump debate permeates America's local races

Axios

Trump on the left and supporters in the stands on the right — Trump takes the stage at a rally in Nashville, Tennessee. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

A dilemma for news organizations in this epic era is that President Trump isn't just the biggest story in politics. On many days, he's the biggest story in business, the biggest story in media, the biggest story in tech, the biggest global story.

The bottom line: The same phenomenon is infusing campaigns. Boston Globe State House reporter Matt Stout found that from statewide races to local contests, the politics and the debate can often be all about Trump.

Sentence du jour: "If all politics was local in the era of Tip O’Neill, the reverse may be true under Trump."
"For local and statewide campaigns normally walled off from Washington, Trump has loomed large across the ballot in Massachusetts this year, permeating the dialogue and campaign messaging in races that are usually dominated by local, not federal, issues."
"Trump has never campaigned in Hatfield. The president is not calling for cuts to school funding in Southampton or denying new liquor licenses in Northampton. But in the race for the First Hampshire District’s state representative seat, where the East-West railway and dairy farming are campaign fodder, so is Trump."
A great example: "[A]n array of candidates have pointed to his election as a catalyst for them launching their first political campaign."

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The Trump debate permeates America's local races

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