Obama’s final message to America: Don’t vote for Trump

Barack Obama made a final campaign stop in Ann Arbor today to tell America one last time to vote for Hillary Clinton.

Michigan has become a battleground state in the home stretch of the election. Although RealClearPolitics puts Clinton five points ahead, Trump has made substantial gains in the last two weeks.

Speaking to a crowd at UMich, Obama made the case for choosing Hillary in front of a packed stadium.

“Hello Michigan, go blue!” Obama said as he took the stage. “I know you guys are feeling good right now, 9 and 0. I’m asking you to pull off another victory this week. We’ve got one more day, Michigan.

“Tomorrow, you will chose whether we continue this journey of progress or whether it all goes out the window. We’ve got a chance to continue to make history tomorrow.”

Obama’s speech made swinging blows at Trump’s beleaguered campaign, calling him “temperamentally unfit” for the job.

“Think about this. His campaign took over his Twitter this weekend. If your closest advisors don’t trust you to tweet, how can we trust you with the nuclear codes?

“This is the first candidate in years to hide his tax records. He hasn’t paid income tax in years. He’s not contributing to our veterans, he’s not contributing to our troops, he’s not contributing to our education.

“Don’t boo, vote. He can’t hear your boos but he’ll hear your votes tomorrow.”

He went on to say Trump was untrustworthy. “Donald Trump is not a guy that’s gonna look out for you. You need to listen, don’t be bamboozled. I don’t think he knows working people except for the people who clean up his hotels. He didn’t care about working people then, he won’t now.”

Obama also called Trump arrogant: “It’s bad being arrogant when you know what you’re talking about, but it’s really bad being arrogant when you don’t know what you’re talking about. Donald Trump is uniquely unqualified to hold this position in office. The most qualified person to run for office is the next president of the United States, Hillary Clinton.”

“She will be a leader for all of us because she knows we’re stronger together,” Obama explained. “The most powerful word in our constitution is ‘we’. We the people. We shall overcome. Yes we can.”

Reminding the crowd about 2008, Obama said Americans chose “hope over fear,” and had the chance to do so again.

“I’ve always seen what makes America great. I have seen you. There’s only one candidate in this race who’s devoted her life to that better America.”

With Chelsea Clinton

Speakers preceding Obama emphasized the importance of Michigan in the electoral map – Senator Gary Peters said: “The world will be watching Michigan tomorrow.”

Chelsea Clinton, who introduced Obama, added: “This is the most consequential election of our lifetime. I think everything we care most about, including our values, are on the ballot this year.

“There is a world of difference between what my mother stands for and what my mother is fighting for, and her opponent, and that might be the biggest understatement that you hear today.

“While she’s fought so hard for so long, she never gives up. She just never gives up. She never forgets who she’s fighting for.”

Democrats spoke earlier and compared Obama’s candidacy as the first Black president to Hillary, who could make history tomorrow as the first woman in the White House.

Congresswoman Brenda Lawrence said: “I, as a woman and an African American, have a lot to lose if this election doesn’t go to Hillary Clinton.”

“When we vote, we win,” the crowd chanted back.

Larry Deitch, running for the Board of Regents at UMich, said: “Trump is the least qualified person to run for president. He is a cancer on American democracy.”

Denise Illitch added: “It’s been about 240 years, do you think it’s about time we had a female president?”

Compared to Obama’s last event, which saw a Trump heckler, we only spotted one solitary Republican. “Go blue, vote red,” she shouted.

Sarah Graham, a senior at UMich and a Hillary supporter, told The Tab: “I think she’s incredibly qualified. She’s done amazing work her entire life. She’s proven to be a very responsive politician. I certainly think she’s qualified to lead this nation.”

Junior Sam Lawrence, who campaigned for Hillary in his home state of California, added: “Obama was a great leader and still is a great leader. I think his presence will be missed.”

Obama closed his speech by telling the audience:

“It’s not that often you have a chance to move history in a better direction. This is one of those moments. Don’t let it slip away. You have a chance to elect our first female president, who can be an example for our daughters and our sons. It’s in your hands. The fate of our democracy depends what you do when you step into that voting booth tomorrow.”