by Andrew Trunsky
USA Today endorsed Democratic nominee Joe Biden Tuesday, marking the paper’s first presidential endorsement in its 38-year history.
The endorsement acknowledged that over 90% of voters have already made up their minds and addressed the few remaining undecided voters as a result.
“Maybe you backed Trump the last time around because you hoped he’d shake things up in Washington or bring back blue-collar jobs. Maybe you liked his populist, anti-elitist message, ” the endorsement said.
“Maybe you couldn’t stomach the idea of supporting a Democrat as polarizing as Clinton. Maybe you cast a ballot for a minor party candidate, or just stayed home.”
“Now, two weeks until Election Day, we suggest you consider a variation of the question Republican Ronald Reagan asked voters when he ran for president in 1980: Is America better off now than it was four years ago?” it asked, noting the worsening coronavirus pandemic and its toll on the economy, intensifying natural disasters and a “racial reckoning.”
The paper also said that it reached out to voters in Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio, three states that helped President Donald Trump clinch his victory over Hillary Clinton four years ago.
“Many declined to comment, citing a general disgust with the election or fear of speaking out publicly,” the endorsement said, but “while some said they were personally better off, most of those willing to talk on camera expressed anguish and dismay about the nation’s election.”
“Biden is well positioned to repair the wreckage Trump has made of the federal government, from the foreign service to the science agencies Trump has tried to politicize,” the endorsement said.
Though the paper did not endorse a candidate in 2016, it did urge voters not to vote for Trump when he ran against Clinton.
“In 2016, we broke tradition and urged you not to vote for Trump. Now we’re making our first presidential endorsement. We hope it’s our last,” the endorsement said.
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Andrew Trunsky is a reporter for the Daily Caller News Foundation.
Photo “Joe Biden” by Gage Skidmore. CC BY-SA 2.0. Background Photo “USA Today” by Vincent Desjardins. CC BY 2.0.
