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President Trump criticized North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper during a rally for being soft on crime, comparing him unfavorably to Michael Dukakis, who lost the presidency partly due to his handling of Willie Horton's furlough. Trump specifically highlighted Decarlos Brown, a violent criminal released under Cooper’s administration who later murdered a refugee woman, and accused Cooper of releasing over 3,500 dangerous inmates. The article notes that Republican challenger Michael Whatley is running against Cooper for the open Senate seat in North Carolina, with Cooper currently leading by 7.8 percentage points according to poll averages.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-17,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
On September 16, President Donald Trump campaigned for Republican Senate candidate Michael Whatley in Gastonia, North Carolina, where he criticized Democratic opponent Roy Cooper over crime and prison policies. Trump compared Cooper to former Massachusetts governor Mike Dukakis during his disastrous 1988 presidential campaign, highlighting the release of convicted murderer Willie Horton on a furlough. He also accused Cooper of releasing 3,500 dangerous criminals from prisons while he was governor, arguing that this made Cooper's situation worse than Dukakis'. Polling shows Whatley trails Cooper by 11 points, with Cooper leading at 49% to Whatley’s 38%. Trump also joked about withholding disaster funds if voters do not elect a Republican in November, before clarifying he was “kidding.” The rally aimed to energize Republicans ahead of the midterms where Democrats are favored to regain control of the House and forecasts predict a close Senate race.
Written for “Trump Campaigns In North Carolina” on 2026-09-17,
grounded in this article and the 4 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it +0.65, but all 3 of its quote(s) are attributed speech - words the article quotes from someone, not the article's own narration, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph
rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 14884: attributed speech only · logged 2026-09-17
President Trump railed against Roy Cooper at a rally Wednesday over his handling of violent criminals as governor of North Carolina – comparing the Democratic Senate hopeful to failed presidential candidate Michael Dukakis.
asserted
Trump → rail → Dukakis
“He was going to win easily, but he allowed a man named Willie Horton out of jail,” Trump said of Dukakis’ disastrous 1988 presidential campaign, during a rally in Gastonia, NC.
asserted
Trump → go → Gastonia
“He ended up losing the race because of that one incident, because he allowed a dirty, rotten killer to come out and rape and kill .. same as what you have over here,” the president continued.
asserted
president → end → what
“But in a way,” Trump added, “this is worse, because Dukakis let Willie Horton out, but Cooper let Decarlos Brown out plus 3,500 other hardened and dangerous criminals.”
asserted
Cooper → add → Brown
Dukakis’ campaign was cripplied by his soft-on-crime approach as Massachusetts governor, including the release of Horton, a convicted murderer, who twice raped a woman while out of prison on a weekend furlough.
asserted
who → cripplie → furlough
His Republican opponent, George H.W. Bush, featured Horton in an infamous campaign ad that played a massive role in sinking Dukakis.
asserted
that → feature → Dukakis
Earlier this year, The Post found more than 600 of those later committed serious felonies like homicides, sex offenses, or other violent crimes.
asserted
600 → find → homicides
Decarlos Brown, a crazed homeless man who was charged with murdering a 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee on a Charlotte light rail train in August 2025, had previously served sentences for larceny, breaking and entering and robbery with a dangerous weapon.
asserted
who → charge → weapon
Brown, who brutally stabbed Iryna Zarutska in the throat without provocation, was among a list of inmates set for release under the settlement – but he was actually freed from prison months prior.
Trump blasted Cooper as a “murderer and criminal protector.
asserted
Trump → stab → murderer
“You can either vote for Roy Cooper to set loose criminals who rape and murder your children and your population, or you can vote for Michael Whatley to protect and defend your children and your population,” Trump told the crowd, referring to the former Republican National Committee chairman and Cooper’s GOP opponent.
asserted
Trump → vote → chairman
Cooper and Whatley are running for the North Carolina Senate seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC).
asserted
Cooper → run → Tillis
The seat is considered one of the most likely to flip Democrat in the 2026 midterm elections.
asserted
seat → consider → elections
Cooper has a 7.8 percentage point advantage over Whatley in the race, according to a RealClearPolitics average of polls.
uncertain
Cooper → have → polls
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