Ohio Voter Is Politically Active; Native Americans To Meet With Trump Officials
NPR
Thursday, January 19, 2017
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During our Divided States follow-up, we hear from Trump supporter Linda Caudill, a retired Ohio businesswoman, and Bernie Sanders supporter Majerle Lister, a member of the Navajo Nation from Arizona.
Transcript
RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:
We listened to a whole lot of voices from around the country during the presidential campaign.
DAVID GREENE, HOST:
Our Divided States series took us to swing states. And this week, we're calling some voters back.
MARTIN: In Ohio, we met Linda Caudill. She's a retired insurance business owner and staunch Donald Trump supporter.
GREENE: And she is excited about tomorrow's inauguration. She almost got to go.
LINDA CAUDILL: Kind of late in the game, I got invitations. But I did not get them until about a week ago. And at that point in time, it was not possible to get a flight. They were all booked.
MARTIN: Even though Caudill won't get to see Trump take the oath of office in person, his campaign has left a lasting impression on her.
CAUDILL: Since Trump announced that he was going to run, I've gotten politically involved, which I had never done before. And I intend to stay politically involved in some way, shape or form - not running for office but to stay behind the scenes.
GREENE: And Rachel, in the state of Arizona, one voter I met was Majerle Lister. He was also inspired by Trump's victory but in a really different way.
MAJERLE LISTER: Since he was elected, my confidence in the electoral process has kind of shrunk a little bit. So I'm more focused on grassroots movements, focusing on my own state legislative group. I've noticed that I have a little bit more courage in doing things when it comes to stepping up, where prior I was a little shy. And I would help, but it wasn't really any leading roles.
GREENE: Lister is Navajo. He works as a researcher at a community college run by the Navajo Nation. When we spoke in October, he was on the fence about Hillary Clinton. He ended up writing in Bernie Sanders on Election Day.
MARTIN: David, this week leaders of the Navajo Nation and other tribes are convening in Washington, and they're here to advocate for Native American issues with the incoming administration.
GREENE: That's right. And Lister is really hoping his leaders stand firm.
LISTER: You know, letting it be known to Trump that, like, you can't bully us. Every tribe should recognize the rhetoric - the racist rhetoric that Trump has. And if they go to these meetings, they should be very firm in saying, we do not appreciate that. We will not accept that, you know, and saying look, this is what we're going to do. We're a sovereign nation, and we expect your administration to respect that.
MARTIN: Those were the voices of Linda Caudill - she's a Trump supporter from Ohio - and Marjerle Lister, a Bernie Sanders supporter from Arizona. They're both voters who we met during our Divided States series this past fall. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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