Dan Bishop, the Republican running in North Carolina’s 9th District, has molded himself into a President Donald Trump facsimile, making Tuesday’s special election a true proxy war for larger races to come.
During a Monday night rally in Fayetteville, Bishop gleefully banged the “fake news” drum, pointing at the reporters in the crowd and calling them “dishonest.”
He breathlessly praised Trump, who shared the stage with him, and bandied about the term “socialist” nearly every time he mentioned the Democratic Party.
Dan Bishop sounding very Trumpian at Monday night’s rally in Fayetteville, North Carolina pic.twitter.com/B62wleNedO
— TPM Livewire (@TPMLiveWire) September 10, 2019
Trump’s inserting himself into the race has drawn even more eyeballs to the special election, as the race will likely be taken as a bellwether for 2020. Looking at the district’s makeup, this race has no business being close. It’s solidly Republican and Trump won it by 12 points in 2016. However, polls have shown Bishop and Democrat Dan McCready neck-and-neck.
The President continued his all-caps support of his mini-me into election day:
NORTH CAROLINA, VOTE FOR DAN BISHOP TODAY. WE NEED HIM BADLY IN WASHINGTON!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 10, 2019
