President Donald Trump on Thursday defended holding a political rally for his 2020 reelection campaign as a record-breaking hurricane slammed Florida, claiming without evidence that “thousands” were lined up for the rally more than a day ahead of time.
“We had thousands of people lined up, and they were there for a day and a half before,” he told reporters from the Oval Office. “And I couldn’t tell people that have been standing in line for a day and a half, wanting to get into the arena, that I’m not going.”
He similarly told reporters Wednesday that there were “thousands of people who started coming last night.”
Hurricane Michael, the most powerful storm to hit Florida’s panhandle on record, made landfall at 1:40 p.m. ET Wednesday. Around two and a half hours later, Trump boarded Air Force One on his way to Erie, Pennsylvania. Once there, he attended a private fundraiser and then addressed the rally crowd.
Trump even borrowed a picture from CNN’s Jim Acosta showing a line to get into the rally venue — but from several hours before it began, not a day and a half.
He said onstage that America “sends its unwavering love and support” to those in the storm’s path. Before long, though, he moved on, celebrating “clean, beautiful Pennsylvania coal.”
Watch below:
Trump makes unsubstantiated claim "thousands of people" were waiting to get into his Pennsylvania campaign rally a "day and a half" before it began. pic.twitter.com/vgHMMVpcwL
— TPM Livewire (@TPMLiveWire) October 11, 2018
Hey, the Trumpanzee sent his highly effective “thoughts and prayers” to the hurricane victims. What else do you need? This is just another fake news story spawned by the liberal media and its Democrat enablers.
The real issue is the wall. If we build the wall, no hurricanes get through!
And wow George Will actually wrote a political editorial for a change instead of some obscure essay about something totally irrelevant to take attention away from how shitty all republicans are these days?
Donnie should have borrowed this from Melania…
When you’re explaining, you’re losing, ergo, Trump is a loser.
The internets never forget. None of them.
And that was two weeks after Hurricane Sandy.