LANSING, Michigan: Donald Trump on Friday met with Arab Americans in Dearborn, Michigan 鈥� the nation鈥檚 largest Arab-majority city 鈥� as the Republican presidential nominee works to court the potentially decisive group despite his history of Islamophobic rhetoric and policy.
Trump was greeted with cheers and applause from a modest crowd at The Great Commoner restaurant in one of his campaign鈥檚 final attempts to garner support in the key battleground state.
Metro Detroit is home to the nation鈥檚 largest concentration of Arab Americans, with a large chunk of them living in Dearborn. The city 鈥� which Democrat Joe Biden won by a 3-to-1 margin in 2020 鈥� has been roiled by political turmoil, with many upset with the Biden-Harris administration鈥檚 handling of the Israel-Hamas war.
Democrats worry that anger over the war will lead traditionally loyal voters to shift their votes to Trump or third-party candidates like Jill Stein 鈥� or skip the top of the ballot altogether. This could prove pivotal in Michigan, a state both parties see as a toss-up.
While the Democratic presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, has been working through surrogates to ease community tensions, Trump鈥檚 visit marked the first by either candidate, according to a local leader, Osama Siblani. Earlier this year, Harris met with the city鈥檚 Democratic mayor, Abdullah Hammoud, though their discussion took place outside Dearborn.
The meeting with Arab supporters Friday follows Trump鈥檚 rally in Michigan last week, when he brought local Muslims up onstage with him. Trump has also received endorsements from two Democratic mayors of Muslim-majority cities.
鈥淚t is time to prioritize our nation鈥檚 best interests and foster lasting peace for all,鈥� Albert Abbas, an Arab American, said Friday while standing next to Trump. 鈥淭his current administration has failed miserably in all aspects of humanity.鈥�
He added, 鈥淲e look to a Trump presidency with hope and envisioning a time where peace flourishes, particularly in Lebanon and Palestine.鈥�
While many Democratic leaders in the Arab community have not endorsed Harris, they are still deeply negative toward Trump and say his endorsements don鈥檛 reflect a majority of the community. They remember his call for a 鈥渢otal and complete shutdown鈥� on Muslims entering the country and his travel restrictions on visitors from Muslim-majority countries. And some point out that Trump has suggested he would give Israel even more leeway to attack its rivals in the region.
Top community leaders in Dearborn, including Hammoud, declined an invitation to meet with Trump while he was in town. Many community leaders say that while Harris has never earned their endorsement, they are still overwhelmingly opposed to Trump.
Siblani, a prominent figure in the community who has engaged with Democratic leaders about ongoing tensions, noted that many 鈥渄o not trust鈥� Trump because of his past policies and remarks. However, he emphasized the significance of Trump鈥檚 visit to Dearborn.
鈥淜amala should have done this months ago,鈥� Siblani said.
Harris defended her record on the issue Friday, telling reporters that she鈥檚 鈥減roud to have significant amount of support from the Arab American community,鈥� while adding that she continues to push for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages.
Israel invaded Gaza after Hamas鈥� Oct. 7, 2023, attack and last month launched an invasion of Lebanon to suppress Hezbollah, the militia that has continuously launched rockets into Israeli territory. At least 43,000 people have died in Gaza, according to Gaza鈥檚 health ministry, which does not distinguish in its death toll between combatants and civilians.
Abbas said Trump allies had reached out to him several weeks ago about hosting Trump in Dearborn. Before hosting Trump, Abbas said he wanted to see a statement from Trump that he said showed Trump 鈥渉as the intentions of ending the war and helping us rebuild Lebanon and helping the displaced and the injured.鈥�
That statement came Wednesday, when Trump posted on X that he wanted to 鈥渟top the suffering and destruction in Lebanon.鈥�
鈥淚 will preserve the equal partnership among all Lebanese communities,鈥� Trump said on X. 鈥淵our friends and family in Lebanon deserve to live in peace, prosperity, and harmony with their neighbors, and that can only happen with peace and stability in the Middle East.鈥�
Once Trump put out the statement, Abbas said he agreed to host the event.