Trump is campaigning in reliably red states, a sign of midterm concerns

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Set us as preferred DURANT, Okla. — David Coleman doesn’t know much about the Republican candidates who are running in November.But he knows President Trump, and he trusts that the president won’t steer him wrong.The 54-year-old Oklahoman made his way to Trump’s midterm rally in Durant, Okla., on Thursday planning to support whomever Trump brought onstage with him.“I am going to ask ChatGPT what their name is and vote for them,” Coleman said as he and thousands of others waited for the president to appear.

Voters like Coleman — who are fiercely loyal to Trump but only loosely attached to the rest of the Republican ticket — are part of those whom the president is trying to target in the final stretch before the Nov.3 election.Rather than prioritizing visits to battleground districts, which will decide which party controls Congress, Trump is rallying in Republican strongholds such as Texas, Oklahoma and Alabama, betting that his presence will be enough to energize a base that may be thinking about sitting out the election because his name isn’t on the ballot.In Oklahoma, Trump told the crowd to imagine he is on the ballot because the future of his “America First” agenda depends on Republicans getting out to vote.

He then urged them to vote for GOP candidates like Senate candidates Ken Paxton of Texas and Kevin Hern of Oklahoma.“You have to get out and vote,” Trump said.“You can’t assume they are going to win.”The red-state itinerary is a departure from what Trump initially promised to do in the 30 days leading up to the midterms.

At a Rose Garden dinner with Republican lawmakers last month, he pledged to campaign in the country’s 35 most competitive districts.But in many of those races, the president is proving to be a political liability as his his approval dwindles, even among Republicans...