WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- On a campaign stop in North Carolina Tuesday, President Donald Trump called on the state to reopen from restrictions put in place to slow the coronavirus pandemic.
Thousands gathered at the Smith Reynolds Airport in Winston-Salem to hear the president speak during his second visit to the state in a week. Polls show the president is in a virtual tie with Democratic nominee Joe Biden in North Carolina.
Supporters gathered outdoors at the airport, many without face masks, chanting "four more years" as Trump spoke.
"If Biden wins, the rioters, anarchists, and arsonists win," Trump said. "They take away your guns, they take away your statues."
Statues of Confederate generals and others around the South were removed, and some toppled, over the summer as Black Lives Matter protests were held around the country after police killed George Floyd in Minneapolis in May.
The president called on North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper to reopen. "North Carolina has to open up," Trump said.
He blamed China for the coronavirus pandemic, at one point saying, "I wonder if they did it on purpose. What do you think?"
But Trump blamed the continued economic shutdowns on politics, suggesting that states will reopen after the election.
"You’re in a shut down. It’s crazy," he said. "North Carolina has to open up."
In a statement on Trump's visit to Winston-Salem, Biden said, "President Trump’s mismanagement has cost too many North Carolinians their lives and livelihoods, with communities of color bearing the brunt of the devastation. He has looked away from North Carolinians in need of a lifeline, even as his wealthy corporate donors get ahead."
"As President, I will fight for your family like it’s my own. I will bring our country together to defeat this pandemic and build our economy back better so that it works for all North Carolinians and leaves no one behind," Biden said.
Trump endorsed Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Forest in his campaign against Cooper. Forest was at the Winston-Salem rally along with Sen. Thom Tillis, who is also running for reelection in November.
The president's last visit to the state attracted national attention and criticism from Democrats and elections officials when he suggested people should vote by mail, then vote a second time in person.
Tuesday, Trump tamped down his comment from last week, but still told his supporters to show up at polling places on Election Day to make sure their votes were counted.
Responding to the president last week, North Carolina Board of Elections Executive Director Karen Brinson Bell warned that it was a felony to vote twice.
She also said people can check the status of their ballot online and make sure it’s counted. She discouraged people who voted by mail from showing up on Election Day.
“That is not necessary, and it would lead to longer lines and the possibility of spreading COVID-19,” Bell said.