The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette endorsed President Trump on Sunday, the first time that the newspaper in the key battleground of Pennsylvania has gone for a Republican presidential nominee since 1972.
The paper cited Mr. Trump’s economic record, including his support for energy industries such as natural gas fracking, while Democrat Joseph R. Biden has pledged to “transition” away from fossil fuels. The endorsement said that Mr. Trump, “for all his faults,” is a better choice than Mr. Biden.
“Under Donald Trump the economy, pre-COVID, boomed, like no time since the 1950s. Look at your 401(k) over the past three years,” the endorsement stated. “Unemployment for Black Americans is lower than it has ever been, under any president of either party. Under Mr. Trump, our trade relationships have vastly improved and our trade deals have been rewritten. Thanks to him, middle America is on the map again and the Appalachian and hourly worker has some hope.”
The paper said Mr. Trump “has moved the debate, in both parties, from free trade, totally unfettered, to managed, or fair, trade. He has put America first, just as he said he would.”
The editorial went on to say that the Biden-Harris ticket “offers us higher taxes and a nanny state that will bow to the bullies and the woke who would tear down history rather than learning from history and building up the country.”
“It offers an end to fracking and other Cuckoo California dreams that will cost the economy and the people who most need work right now,” the paper said. “‘Good-paying green jobs’ are probably not jobs for Pittsburgh, or Cleveland, or Toledo, or Youngstown.”
The Post-Gazette also said Mr. Biden “is too old for the job, and fragile.”
“There is a very real chance he will not make it through the term,” the endorsement said. “Mr. Trump is also too old but seemingly robust. But in Mike Pence, Mr. Trump has a vice president ready to take over, if need be. He is a safe pair of hands. Sen. Kamala Harris gives no evidence of being ready to be president.”
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.