“The Persistence” is the internet sensation behind the MAGA movement in Baltimore
This past week, President Trump had some harsh yet arguably true things to say about Baltimore. The city, which resides in Maryland’s 7th congressional district, has been led by Rep. Elijah Cummings for the last 23 years. Violent crime has increased in the last two decades, with a whopping 309 homicides committed in 2018. This is compared to the national 5.7 average which has remained relatively consistent for the last 20 years. (Baltimore Sun) Besides the astronomical crime rates, parts of Baltimore also have a reputation for being filthy. In a controversial tweet, the president said “Cumming[‘s] District is a disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess.” He also inquired about the $1.8 billion given to Baltimore by the federal government in 2015. “Where is all this money going? How much is stolen? Investigate this corrupt mess immediately!”
“Cumming[‘s] District is a disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess.”
@RealDonaldTrump, Twitter
The internet was stormed with critical comments and articles about Trump’s posts, calling them racist and bigoted. For the record, Rep. Cummings is black and so are most of his constituents in Baltimore. Alas, trying to prove the statements he made to be incorrect proved to be more difficult. While Democrats scrambled to defend one of their own, Republican activist Scott Presler stepped to the plate to tackle the issue head-on.
Who is Scott Presler?
Presler, who goes by “The Persistence” online, is a man on a mission to “re-elect President Trump in 2020,” according to his website. His claim to fame is “working to defeat Hillary Clinton” back during the 2016 election, and touring the country registering GOP voters and inspiring others to go out and do the same. However, not everything he does is to directly score votes. This week, he made it evident that he cares about the people of Baltimore. On July 28th, he tweeted: “Next week, I’m coming to Baltimore. I’m organizing a trash clean up in the city.”
This was met with an enormous outpouring of support from his followers and thousands of other Trump supporters online. At the time of writing this, his tweet has amassed over 23,000 likes and 9,000 retweets. After receiving many comments asking how people could help, Presler announced that the clean-up day would be on August 5th, and that anyone could sign up for a shift to come help out. “Twitter Philanthropist” Bill Pulte offered to donate in the form of trash bags and gloves so the volunteers could clear out the garbage safely and effectively.
I personally reached out to Presler to see how I could help out, and I have since signed up for several shifts of trash pick-up in West Baltimore. This will most definitely take the media by storm, and I will be there to not only participate, but to give a first-hand report. Stay tuned.
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Scott, Just heard about your Baltimore clean up plan the today. Would love to participate but due to a minor disability, I can not drive there alone. Do you know of any other people coming from the Pittsburgh area that might be willing go take on another passenger and supporter?
My email addy is [email protected]
Thanks
Chris Riley