Rocker John Mellencamp is throwing his weight behind former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (D), appearing in an ad for the presidential hopeful and painting a dire picture of small town America — a picture that stands in stark contrast to the economic realities the president laid out during Tuesday’s State of the Union address.
The ad features the “Small Town” rocker painting a dire picture of small town America, declaring that it is “disappearing”:
I was born in a Small Town. And I live in a Small Town. But the reality is, Small Town America is disappearing. And @MikeBloomberg will fight for them. https://t.co/fupBZCd9oy via @YouTube #mikebloomberg #johnmellencamp #smalltown
— John Mellencamp (@johnmellencamp) February 5, 2020
No one knows Small Town America like Indiana’s @johnmellencamp. He’s spent his life telling the stories of the people that live there and that work there.
But small towns in America are struggling. As president, I promise to fight for them. pic.twitter.com/vHMR7V9BRk
— Mike Bloomberg (@MikeBloomberg) February 5, 2020
The ad credits Bloomberg with creating “hundreds of thousands” of jobs as a “business leader and mayor” and proclaims that the billionaire will “finally invest” in infrastructure and partner with community colleges in an effort to “fight” for the “big dreams” of small towns.
“The stakes are too high to not nominate the candidate who will take the fight directly to Trump,” the “Hurts So Good” singer said in a separate statement.
“From small towns to big cities, Mike Bloomberg has the experience to represent all Americans,” he added.
Bloomberg’s ad featuring the “Jack and Diane” singer paints a drastically different picture than the economic reality Trump presented during the State of the Union address.
“Three years ago, we launched the great American comeback. Tonight, I stand before you to share the incredible results. Jobs are booming, incomes are soaring, poverty is plummeting, crime is falling, confidence is surging, and our country is thriving and highly respected again,” Trump said, touting the historically low unemployment rate, addition of millions of jobs created, the number of people coming off food stamps, and the 3.5 million people who have joined the workforce.
“In eight years under the last administration, over 300,000 working-age people dropped out of the workforce. In just three years of my administration, 3.5 million people — working-age people — have joined the workforce,” Trump said.
“Since my election, the net worth of the bottom half of wage earners has increased by 47 percent — three times faster than the increase for the top 1 percent,” he continued. “After decades of flat and falling incomes, wages are rising fast — and, wonderfully, they are rising fastest for low-income workers, who have seen a 16 percent pay increase since my election. This is a blue-collar boom.”
Mellencamp has referred to himself as a “socialist” in the past and called Trump voters “wrong” during a CBS Sunday Morning interview in 2017.
“I can’t help it that they’re wrong. They’re just wrong. I’m sorry. You’re wrong,” he said.
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