YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO — You know you’re a helluva town when you capture the twin titles of America’s most dangerous and corrupt city.
That’s Youngstown, Ohio, a quintessential Rust Belt tale of woe.
A steel industry powerhouse for much of the 20th century, the mills started shutting down in the late 1970s and kept shutting. In 1950, the population stood at 168,000, but it now stands around 59,000.
As a result, nature has taken over huge swaths of various neighbourhoods, reclaiming the empty lots where houses once stood and children played.
The old city always votes Democratic while the suburbs in Mahoning County go Republican.
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The Texas Roadhouse steak joint in suburban Mahoning County is jammed on a Wednesday night. Two men — one a banker and the other a former Democratic Party official — want to weigh in but withhold their names.
“Trump has better policies,” Mike, the 47-year-old banker, told the Toronto Sun. “This area used to be a lot more Democratic but Trump took the county for the Republicans for the first time since Richard Nixon.”
“It’s the economy, it’s all that really matters,” he added.
His buddy, the longtime Democratic Party operative, will also be voting for Trump.
“I retired out of it and I wasn’t going to vote for either, but I’ve made up my mind and I’m voting for Trump,” he said. “And I agree, he has better policies. You don’t have to have the warm and fuzzies to be a good leader.”
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In 2000, the New Republic listed these Youngstown officials as mob-controlled: “Chief of police, the outgoing prosecutor, the sheriff, the county engineer, members of the local police force, a city law director, several defence attorneys, politicians, judges, and a former assistant U.S. attorney.”
During the 1950s and ’60s, local wags called deadly car bombings a “Youngtown Tune-up” while the Saturday Evening Post called it “Crime Town USA.” As in many other places, the mob today is half a dozen old fellas playing pinochle.
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K.B. Speck, 38, her husband and their girlfriend (“she’s from Ottawa”) are packing their bags and leaving Youngstown. She told the Sun they’re moving to South Carolina because she hates the snow (“it depresses me”).
As for the Presidential race?
“The whole thing is ludicrous, the whole American system needs to be re-evaluated from the bottom up,” Speck, a barber, said. “This election I’m voting for that woman … what’s her name?”
I respond: “Kamala Harris.”
“Yeah, her … girl power,” Speck said.
She added that she would like to see the death penalty for pedophiles and adjustments in the prison system for the neuro-divergent and in mental health.
“I’m neurodivergent and have autism but I’m a genius. My husband and I are both great at sex,” the Youngstown native said. “As far as I’m concerned Trump supporters are a–holes, claiming drag queens are flashing kids.”
She then turned away giving her hubby a deep kiss.
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Once, there were parades in Youngstown. Mill workers and their families would dress up to go shopping in the city’s then-bustling downtown.
Now, the city is hoping for a revival.
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For Mary Steger, a Youngstown native now living in Indiana, the major issue in the upcoming election is illegal immigration.
“Illegal immigrants are getting benefits that our veterans and Native Americans don’t get. They didn’t earn it, our veterans did,” Steger said. “Why not make it easier for legal immigrants and harder for the illegals?”
She added: “Our people are getting shafted.”
As for the November showdown, Steger said she never votes straight party line. It’s the individual candidate and the issues in the big campaign.
And despite her concerns about illegal immigration, she won’t be voting for Donald Trump, citing the former president’s penchant for smears.
“There’s no way I’m voting for Trump and Vance. I’ll vote against anyone who makes false statements,” she said.
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For hotel manager Amit Kochhor, 41, the election comes down to dollars and sense. A self-described Republican, he said he’ll be voting for Trump.
“It’s inflation, everything is getting so expensive, it’s crazy everything is so hard to afford,” he said. “I need a new car but the interest is 9%. Affordability is killing us. I have relatives in the Toronto area and they used to be amazed at how cheap groceries were here. Not anymore.”
Kochhor said he was doing much better financially under Trump but admits the real estate tycoon has shortcomings.
“He’s not a good politician,” Kochhor laughed. “But he was good for business and I don’t care about his personal life. It’s not as bad as Canada but the U.S. wasn’t like this before.”
“It’s an uncertain election but my vote is definitely not going to Kamala,” he added.
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Allie Wasser, 61, agrees with Kochhor.
“As a mom, I look at the future for my kids and grandkids. The CDC (Centres for Disease Control) is taking over our sovereignty,” she said. “Illegal immigration is a big part of it, now it’s in smaller cities too. I can’t pay my bills.”
In addition, as part of illegal immigration, she also worries about violent crime.
“There’s too much turmoil. I don’t watch TV news anymore, but I will be voting for Trump,” Wasser said. “He comes across as not normal but he says what people are actually thinking – but things are bad on both sides.”
She added: “They all need to sit down and work things out. But my biggest fear is if she (Kamala Harris) gets into power.”