Hillary Clinton is going to the site of the Trump Taj Mahal workers strike to give a speech about Donald Trump's management of his former casino empire. A strike by the Local 54 Unite-HERE workers will be the backdrop of a speech in which the Democratic Party's presumptive nominee is going to discuss her opponent's checked history in the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s.
Strike Against Carl Icahn
Workers for the Local 54 are less concerned about Donald Trump and more concerned about the current billionaire owner of Trump Entertainment Resorts, Carl Icahn. The ownership group between the reigns of Donald Trump and Carl Icahn convinced a bankruptcy judge to take away the Trump Taj Mahal workers' health and pension benefits during a reorganization of the company. Now, he is refusing to give the benefits back in any meaningful way, so the workers are striking during the casino-hotel's busiest time of the year.
Hillary Clinton is trading on the name of the casino, Trump Taj Mahal, to highlight Donald Trump's history of alleged double-dealing and his 3 bankruptcies while in Atlantic City.
Clinton Campaign Statement
A statement Clinton's campaign released announcing her visit to Atlantic City said she would "make the case that Donald Trump is unfit to serve as president based on the wake of destruction his business dealings have left in the seaside town and for businesses and families across the country."
The statement continued, "Clinton will highlight Trump's history in Atlantic City of multiple bankruptcies, stiffing contractors, and spurring hundreds of job losses while pocketing cash for himself."
Trump Campaign spokeswoman Hope Hicks did not comment on Clinton's visit to Atlantic City.
As the former Secretary of State prepares for her latest attack on her opponent, some of the striking workers asked to give comments said they did not have have a problem working for Donald Trump.
A Bartender's Story
Richard Zak has been a bartender at the Trump Taj Mahal since it opened in 1990. Mr. Zak has lived through each era of the Taj's management, but he said he had no complaints about the Donald Trump regime.
Zak said he was not sure if Hillary Clinton's visit would be a help or hindrance to the Local 54's cause. He said, "It depends if she comes here with her own agenda. If she comes here to bash Trump, how does that help us?"
The longtime bartender said of Mr. Trump, "When he was here running the place, things were fine. We never had to worry about a contract, and we were always open during strikes when other places couldn't reach contracts."
A Veteran Cook's Experience
Douglas Faulker has been a cook at the Trump Taj Mahal for 17 years, and he was a cook at the Trump Plaza for 12 years before that. Like Richard Zak, he had no criticism for Donald Trump. Faulkner said, "When Donald Trump was here, it was OK. We had plenty of business."
A History of Stiffing Contractors
Sec. Clinton's speech is in reference to a story in the New York Times about the hundreds of contractors who claim Donald Trump never paid them for work or services during his time in Atlantic City. Many of these small business owners eventually filed lawsuits against Trump; some claimed his lack of payment of 5-figure and 6-figure sums drove them out of business.
According to the Local 54 members, they never saw that behavior. Union members have collective bargaining, so it is harder to slight an organization's members on their pay. It shows that people are nuanced and situations are nuanced.
Hillary Clinton's Line of Attack
Hillary Clinton is likely to attack Trump on these supposed inconsistencies, because it paints a picture of a bully who picks on vulnerable people, which is a view of Mr. Trump that many Americans hold.
That is what presidential politics is about: either building oneself up or painting one's opponent as unworthy of the office. Both sides have argued their opponent is singularly unworthy to be President of the United States. Donald Trump has called Hillary Clinton "Crooked Hillary", and suggested she is the most corrupt person to ever run for president.
For her part, Clinton gave a speech in early June in which she said Trump is "he's temperamentally unfit to hold an office that requires knowledge, stability and immense responsibility."
The presumptive nominee for the Democrats added that Donald Trump's ideas are a mixture of "bizarre rants, personal feuds, and outright lies."
Going Negative
To say the 2016 campaign has a chance to be the most negative campaign in U.S. presidential history is not going out on a limb. Both candidates have unprecedented negative ratings, so the race is likely to be about making their opponent unelectable. Both have made inroads towards that goal.
Donald Trump's campaign philosophy "Make America Great Again" has inspired his followers, just as his rhetoric against Mexicans, Muslims, and other minorities has offended or even frightened many. Of the two candidates, he is said to have communicated a program for change, though he also has higher negative ratings and a propensity to stick his foot in his mouth. His praise of Saddam Hussein on Tuesday is just the latest example, and likely to have more of an impact on the presidential race than Hillary's Atlantic City speech on Wednesday.
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