Two steel mills in Lorain, Ohio, are set to close by the end of March, laying off hundreds of people in an area that has seen jobs slowly erode for more than two decades, NBC News reported.
Union workers blame trade deals, especially the North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA, passed in 1993. And with the Trans-Pacific Partnership, another trade deal with Asian countries, on the verge of passing, for many, the future looks blight.
During nearly every campaign speech, GOP front-runner Donald Trump is critical of trade deals. It's a position counter to that of traditional Republicans who support free trade.
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, meanwhile, also has a presence in this working-class enclave of northeast Ohio. He, too, deplores the trade deals and often criticizes his opponent Hillary Clinton for her husband's role in passing NAFTA and her support of TPP until she came out against it during her presidential campaign.
