During a Friday appearance on MSNBC, documentary filmmaker Michael Moore warned Democrats not to underestimate President Donald Trump ahead of the 2020 presidential election, Mediaite reported.
Speaking with anchor Joy Reid, Moore — who was one of the few public figures to correctly predict the outcome of the 2016 election — said that Democrats should “never take Trump for granted.”
“If anybody is sitting at home thinking ‘Oh, man, we’ve got this one in the bag. Whoa, did you hear him today? He said he’s done more for black people than Abraham Lincoln. Whoa! We’re going to win,’ No. No,” the filmmaker began.
“I’m warning you and I’m begging you, please, do not sell this man short. He has pulled off so many things, so many times.”
Moore said that Trump may win reelection even if former Vice President Joe Biden , the Democratic Party’s presumptive presidential nominee, wins the popular vote by as much as five million.
Per Breitbart , during his conversation with Reid, the filmmaker also argued that Trump has a dedicated base of supporters who will turn out for him in November no matter what. The filmmaker said that Trump’s base, which consists of “a lot of white men,” has been galvanized by the recent protests against police brutality.
The nationwide protests began after Derek Chauvin, a white Minnesota police officer, pinned 46-year-old George Floyd to the ground and knelt on his neck. Floyd, an African-American, died of apparent asphyxiation. According to Moore, Trump supporters are “angry” at Chauvin because he has “really messed it up for the white male holding onto that power.”
Moore pointed out that Trump has consistently polled between 40 and 44 percentage points, which suggests that the president’s supporters are loyal and dedicated. “They are going to show up. They’re counting on their rage, and their emotion is so much stronger,” the filmmaker concluded.
Indeed, Trump appears to be in a difficult position. The protests against police brutality exploded amid the coronavirus pandemic, which disrupted the United States economy in an unprecedented way, leading to record unemployment. In addition, virtually all recent polls suggest that Biden is ahead nationwide and in key battleground states.
For instance, a CNN poll released on Monday showed that the president’s approval rating is at its worst point since January 2019. The survey found that 41 percent of Americans support Trump while 53 percent back the former vice president.
Republicans on Capitol Hill are reportedly anxious about the GOP’s electoral prospects and worry that Trump’s response to the national crises has been inadequate. Some Republican lawmakers have apparently tried to distance themselves from the president, refusing to embrace his inflammatory rhetoric.