Novi, Michigan CNN —
Former President Donald Trump attended a campaign rally in Michigan on Saturday as he appealed to Arab American and Muslim voters disillusioned and angry with U.S. policy toward Israel and Gaza, key battleground states. Muslim leaders were invited to the podium.
“They could swing the election in either direction,” Trump said in Novi, a Detroit suburb about 30 minutes from Dearborn, which last year became the nation’s first Arab-majority city.
President Trump said in his speech that he had met with Islamic leaders earlier in the day. Others on stage included what the campaign described as “prominent leaders of Michigan’s Muslim community,” including Imam Belal al-Zuhairi, who described Trump as a “peaceful” candidate.
“As Muslims, we support President Trump because he is committed to peace. He is committed to peace, not war,” al-Zuhairi said. “We support Donald Trump because he promised to end the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine.”
President Trump criticized Israel’s war in Gaza on public relations grounds, saying Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the military needed to “end it quickly.” He also accused President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris of not adequately supporting Israel, while the current administration and Harris campaign have not criticized Israel or threatened to halt arms shipments to the country. They almost refuse to consider it.
In an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt on the one-year anniversary of the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israeli soil, President Trump spoke about the situation in the besieged Gaza Strip, home to about 2 million Palestinians. He pondered the prospects for real estate in the area.
“As a developer, the weather, the water, everything, the climate could be the most beautiful place,” Trump said. “It could be very beautiful.”
In 2017, during his first month in office, President Trump issued an executive order banning entry of citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries (Iraq, Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen) for 90 days. issued. The order indefinitely banned Syrian refugees and blocked all refugees from entering the United States for four months. (After a long legal battle, the “travel ban” partially survived. Biden rescinded the order shortly after taking the oath of office in 2021.)
But by criticizing both Harris and Biden, the Trump campaign and its allies have sought to raise awareness among Arab Americans and Muslims of continued U.S. support for Israeli military operations in Gaza and, more recently, in Lebanon. Trying to capture anger, he appeals to anti-war voters: Mr. Trump has claimed to ensure peace and argued that the Democratic Party is out of favor with pro-Israel voters.
Trump has frequently questioned why Jewish Americans would vote for Harris, repeatedly saying Jewish Democrats “should have their heads checked.” At an event purporting to stand against anti-Semitism in September, he even warned of a possible defeat in November: “Jews will have a lot of work to do.”
Ms. Harris has called for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and said she supports a two-state solution in the region, but she has drawn more heated criticism from pro-Palestinian and anti-war activists, who have broken with Mr. Biden and said she supports a two-state solution in the region. He is pleading with Mr. Gaza to break with him. Supports conditionality on military aid to Israel.
During a brief conference in Flint, Michigan, three weeks ago, a group of Arab American advocates and leaders asked Harris “how she governs on this issue and “We urge them to distance themselves from the current administration’s policies with which we disagree.” Wael Al-Zayat, CEO of Muslim American advocacy group Emgage Action, told CNN afterward.
“The greatest thing is happening right now as more Jews, Catholics, Evangelicals, Mormons and Muslims are joining our cause than ever before,” Trump said at a rally Saturday. he claimed.
“Muslim and Arab voters in Michigan and across the country want an end to endless wars and a return to peace in the Middle East. That’s all they want,” Trump said.
President Trump also took advantage of Harris’ recent campaign efforts with former Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney. Mr. Cheney’s father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, was one of the architects of the U.S. invasion of Iraq and the years of war that followed. Both Cheney and Harris support Harris.
Hours later, while campaigning in Kalamazoo, Michigan, Harris was interrupted early in her speech by protesters chanting, “No more war on Gaza.”
“When it comes to Gaza, we have to end the war. And we have to end the war and bring the hostages home,” he said, trying to drown out the protesters. Harris said while doing so.
This story has been updated with additional information.
CNN’s Alison Main contributed to this report.
