By james art NEW YORK (AP) — Several of Donald Trump’s allies used harsh and extreme rhetoric Sunday against Vice President Kamala Harris and other Trump critics before the former president took the stage at Madison Square Garden in New York.
What you need to know
- With just over a week to go before Election Day, the former president will take the stage Sunday at one of the country’s most famous venues
- Several of Donald Trump’s allies have used harsh and extreme rhetoric against Vice President Kamala Harris and other Trump critics
- Trump’s childhood friend David Rehm has called the Democratic presidential nominee, who is vying to become the first woman elected president, the “Antichrist” and “the devil.”
- Businessman Grant Cardone told the crowd that Harris “and her pimps are going to destroy our country”
Trump’s childhood friend David Rehm has called the Democratic presidential nominee, who is vying to become the first woman elected president, the “Antichrist” and “the devil.” Businessman Grant Cardone told the crowd that Harris “and her pimps are going to destroy our country.”
The opening of the rally was a mix of Trumpism, with an extended clip from the 1970 film Patton, a picture of the American flag with Trump in front of it hugging the Empire State Building while “God Bless America” was shouted from loudspeakers and a stand-up routine from the comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, which was full of bawdy jokes, often invoking racist stereotypes about Hispanics, Jews, and blacks.
“I don’t know if you guys know this, but right now there is literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean. I think it’s called Puerto Rico,” said Hinchcliffe, whose joke was immediately noted by the Harris campaign as it competes with Trump to win over Puerto Rican communities in Pennsylvania and other swing states.
With just over a week to go before Election Day, the former president was scheduled to take the stage Sunday in one of the country’s most famous venues, hosting a hometown rally to deliver the final message of his campaign against Harris. The program leading up to his appearance was filled with conservative officials, longtime allies and media figures popular among conservatives, such as Dr. Phil McGraw and former Fox News host Tucker Carlson.
Much of the program resembled a somewhat surreal version of July’s Republican National Convention, which convened less than two days after Trump survived an assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania. Wrestling icon Hulk Hogan, who appeared at the RNC, resurfaced Sunday wearing a feather boa and ripping open his shirt to reveal a Trump campaign T-shirt underneath. He flexed his muscles repeatedly and gestured to the crowd after telling the audience: “Trump is the only person who can fix this country today.”
While some Democrats and pundits questioned Trump’s decision to hold what they dismissed as a vanity event in his hometown, the rally guaranteed Trump what he craved most: the spotlight, wall-to-wall coverage and national audience.
The closing message he will deliver Sunday, according to his campaign, is that Harris has “broken” the country and that Trump is “going to fix it.” Participants in the rally hours earlier waved signs saying “Trump will fix it.”
Several speakers ripped Hillary Clinton, the Democrat defeated by Trump eight years ago, for saying Trump on Sunday would “reenact” a pro-Nazi event at the Garden in February 1939. One critic, radio host Sid Rosenberg, used an expletive to condemned the former secretary of state.
“Hey guys, now they’re hustling and trying to call us Nazis and fascists,” said Alina Haba, one of Trump’s lawyers, who draped a sparkly “MAGA” jacket over the lectern as she spoke. “And you know what they say, guys? It’s very scary. They claim we will hunt them down and try to put them in jail. Well, isn’t that rich?’
Hogan declared in his signature husky growl, “I don’t see no stinkin’ Nazis in here.”
Trump has denounced the four charges against him as politically motivated. In recent weeks, he has stepped up his condemnation of “enemies within,” naming domestic political rivals and proposing to use the military to hunt them down. Harris, in turn, called Trump a “fascist.”
The arena was packed hours before Trump spoke. Outside the arena, the sidewalks were packed with Trump supporters wearing red “Make America Great Again” hats. There was an increased security presence. Streets were blocked off and access to Penn Station was restricted.
In the crowd was Philip D’Agostino, a longtime Trump supporter from Queens, the borough where Trump grew up. The 64-year-old said it was fitting that Trump was speaking in what was billed as “the most famous arena in the world”.
“It just goes to show you that he has more followers than any person who has ever lived,” D’Agostino said.
The rally is one of a series of detours Trump has made to battleground states, including a recent rally in Coachella, California — best known for the famous music festival named after the city — and one in May at the Jersey Shore. This summer he campaigned in the South Bronx.
To reach them, Trump spent hours on popular podcasts. And his campaign has worked to create viral moments like his visit last weekend to a McDonald’s restaurant, where he made fries and served them to supporters from a car window. The video of the stop, posted by his campaign, has been viewed more than 40 million times on TikTok alone.
Harris has also traveled to non-battlefield countries for major events designed to deliver a national message. She appeared in Houston on Friday with music superstar Beyoncé to talk about reproductive rights and will deliver her own closing arguments on Tuesday from the Ellipse in Washington, where Trump is speaking ahead of the Capitol Hill riot on January 6, 2021.
Trump will be joined at the rally by supporters including Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, who has spent tens of millions of dollars boosting Trump’s campaign.
Trump is often compared to the biggest entertainers in the country. The former reality TV star has long spoken of her desire to hold a rally at the venue in interviews and private conversations.
Aside from the national spotlight and the allure of appearing on one of the world’s most famous stages, state Republicans say the rally will help push candidates away. New York is home to a handful of competitive congressional races that could determine which party controls the House next year.
Trump will also use the shutdown as a big fundraising opportunity as he continues to trail Harris seriously in the money race.
New York hasn’t voted for a Republican for president in 40 years. But that didn’t stop Trump from continuing to insist he could win.
Trump routinely uses his hometown as a foil to audiences in other states, painting a bleak vision of the city that bears little resemblance to reality. He presents it as riddled with crime and overrun by violent immigrant gangs that have taken over Fifth and Madison avenues and occupied Times Square.
Trump has a complicated history with the place where he built his business empire and which has made him a tabloid and reality TV star. Its residents charged him last year with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. He was found guilty in that case and was also found liable in civil court for business fraud and sexual assault.