{"id":309674,"date":"2026-10-19T06:14:08","date_gmt":"2026-10-19T06:14:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/309674\/"},"modified":"2026-10-19T06:14:08","modified_gmt":"2026-10-19T06:14:08","slug":"in-a-former-us-steel-city-ordinary-people-struggle-to-get-by","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/309674\/","title":{"rendered":"In a former US steel city, ordinary people struggle to get by"},"content":{"rendered":"

Pennsylvania swing district could help decide control of the House in Nov 3 midterms\n <\/p>\n

BETHLEHEM, United States: In a US city once known for its steel industry, workers enjoy family outings beside retired, rust-streaked blast furnaces. The vast steel mill in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, fell silent in the 1990s. But the partly redeveloped industrial site came alive again at a recent Oktoberfest event, with people in Bavarian dress, large beer steins and a giant screen showing American football.<\/p>\n

Among those attending were supporters of President Donald Trump who are sticking with his Republican Party despite their disappointments. Commercial roofer Nev Hamm, 62, remembers living \u201cright behind\u201d the steel plant in the 1980s, when it was still running. \u201cIt was good and they screwed up here. They gave it away,\u201d he told AFP. But he believes industry is \u201ccoming back\u201d thanks to Trump\u2019s protectionist policies. \u201cIt\u2019s gonna be better as soon as we\u2019re done with the Iranian war,\u201d he added, referring to the US-Israel war with Iran that began in late February.<\/p>\n

Bethlehem sits at the heart of the Lehigh Valley, once a stronghold of US heavy industry. Workers now find jobs in logistics, food manufacturing, especially pet food, and a growing pharmaceutical sector, with a plant for weight-loss drugs due to open soon.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"ALLENTOWN,<\/p>\n

ALLENTOWN, United States: Construction workers at a job site in downtown Allentown, Pennsylvania, on Oct 6. The state\u2019s 7th congressional district, which includes Allentown and Bethlehem, could tip control of the House of Representatives to the Democrats in the Nov 3 midterm elections. \u2014 AFP<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"ALLENTOWN,<\/p>\n

ALLENTOWN, United States: Shawn Smith, a technician at the region\u2019s last Mack truck plant and a representative of United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 677, poses for a portrait at the union\u2019s building in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on Oct 5. \u2014 AFP<\/p>\n

Beth Piniella, 40, who cleans a warehouse for a packaging and office supplies distributor, feels her family is doing all right. \u201cI make decent money,\u201d she said. Of Trump, for whom she voted, she said: \u201cI really think it\u2019s hit or miss on certain things.\u201d Her husband Brian said he was \u201ca little disappointed\u201d. \u201cI thought prices were coming down,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The district where they live could help hand control of the US House of Representatives to the Democrats in the Nov 3 midterm elections. Republican incumbent Ryan Mackenzie won narrowly in 2024. His Democratic rival is Bob Brooks, a former firefighter and political newcomer who presents himself as a voice for the working class.<\/p>\n

Some voters, like Henry Martin, plan to skip the polls entirely, frustrated with both main parties. \u201cThey\u2019re living the high life,\u201d said the 32-year-old warehouse manager. \u201cThe everyday average Joe like me, we\u2019re not doing great at all.\u201d He feels \u201cstuck\u201d between \u201cterrible\u201d rent and home prices that are \u201cinsanely out of reach\u201d.<\/p>\n

In nearby Allentown, a billboard urges drivers to vote for Brooks. Ramona Chery, who works at a tire shop below the sign, said the city\u2019s large Latino community has been shaken by Trump\u2019s hardline immigration policies and by inflation. Gains among Latino voters helped return Trump to the White House in 2024. But \u201cthere\u2019s more poverty than before\u201d, Chery said.<\/p>\n

Mike Shupp, president of the local United Auto Workers union, said: \u201cI wish there was a manufacturing boom, but I\u2019m not seeing it.\u201d At his office in Allentown, he recalled how the area used to be lined with factories. He worries that truck maker Mack will keep cutting US production and shifting jobs to Mexico. The region\u2019s last Mack plant, about a 20-minute drive away, employs some 2,800 people. In April 2025, the company announced plans to lay off up to 350 workers there, partly because of Trump\u2019s tariffs. Around 170 were eventually let go, but were recalled when business improved, and Trump himself visited the site in June to promote his policies.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wasn\u2019t interested in being involved with that,\u201d said Shawn Smith, 52, a technician who puts the finishing touches on heavy trucks. Smith, a union representative, backs Brooks. He said workers \u201cdon\u2019t talk politics\u201d at the plant because \u201cit just starts an argument\u201d. Still, he believes \u201cthere\u2019s enough of a disconnect, and there\u2019s enough independents and Republicans that (will) say enough is enough, and they want a little bit of a change\u201d. \u2014 AFP<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Pennsylvania swing district could help decide control of the House in Nov 3 midterms BETHLEHEM, United States: In…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":309675,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[153,155,154,126765,126766,126764,139,37167],"class_list":["post-309674","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem-headlines","tag-bethlehem-news","tag-kuwait","tag-kuwait-news","tag-kuwait-times","tag-news","tag-times"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/309674","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=309674"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/309674\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/309675"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=309674"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=309674"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=309674"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}