UPPER PROVIDENCE TWP — Former President Donald Trump planned to build a town hall for his first public appearance of the campaign in suburban Philadelphia in 2024. But after two medical emergencies cut short the question-and-answer portion, Trump remained on stage for more than half an hour, swaying to some of his favorite songs.
“It’s a good crowd,” Trump said, taking the stage shortly before 7 p.m., almost an hour later than scheduled.
Several thousand fans packed the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center and Fairgrounds in Montgomery County for the event moderated by South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem.
Trump only answered five questions from attendees before two incidents in which viewers required medical attention.
While doctors attended to the first person, some audience members sang God Bless America. After a few minutes, Trump asked if they could play Ave Maria on the speakers, a song he mentioned was played at his recent rally in Butler.
Audience questions from former Democrats
If there was a theme that emerged among the audience’s questions, it seemed to be disgruntled former Democrats. The conversation covered familiar Trump campaign topics such as border security, inflation and some international conflicts.
A listener named Heather, who claimed to have been a registered Democrat most of her life, asked Trump at 7:34 p.m. how he would handle deportations of illegal immigrants, which became a cornerstone of his campaign.
During Trump’s response, it appeared the other person needed medical attention, so he asked for the music to resume.
– Does anyone else want to subdued? Trump asked after a few minutes. This was almost 45 minutes after Trump took the stage.
Nearly an hour into the show, Trump suggested ending the questions and instead making the rest of the evening a “music festival.”
Trump didn’t answer any questions afterward, but he emphasized Pennsylvania’s importance in the upcoming election, saying that whoever wins the commonwealth will win the election.
Trump blasted Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, on a number of issues, once again claiming she is “more dangerous” than President Joe Biden and that she is “not a smart woman.”
‘You choose the next president’: Pivotal Erie County, Pennsylvania, rallies for Harris
At 8 p.m., Trump and Noem were still on stage and music — including “YMCA,” “November Rain” and “Rich Men North of Richmond” — was playing loudly. At this point, some of the fans in the back went to the exits, but many of the fans in the front stayed put.
“Nobody’s figuring out what’s going on,” Trump said as “Hallelujah” began playing at 8:06 p.m. “No one leaves.”
“Turn on the music,” he said.
Trump and Noem remained on stage until 8:31 p.m., and even as Trump left the stage, he appeared to be talking to supporters who were still present near the front.
Montgomery County, the third most populous county in Pennsylvania, was a reliably blue area for decades, but has moved left during the Trump era. Barack Obama carried the county by 14 points over Republican Mitt Romney in 2012. In 2016, Trump lost to Hillary Clinton by 21 points and in 2016 by 26 points to Joe Biden. 2020. Biden only carried Philadelphia and Delaware counties by larger margins than Montgomery County.
Democrats are counting on enormous numbers of Philadelphia and its counties to take control of the state.
This was supported by former Democratic Congressman Peter Deutsch of Florida Trump’s candidacy on October 7. He made brief remarks during Monday’s event, citing his belief that the GOP nominee would be better suited to “maintain and sustain world peace” than his Democratic opponent.
Gwen Walz, wife of Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, campaigned for the seat with Pennsylvania first lady Lori Shapiro on Monday in Pennsylvania.
Before his rally, Walz criticized Trump’s stance on abortion rights.
“For nine long years, Trump has tried to divide us – pitting neighbor against neighbor, friend against friend,” Walz said, according to a press release from the Harris campaign. “I actually heard that Trump is also here in Collar Counties today sharing his old grievances and grievances.”
“He may even try to rewrite the history of his attacks on our reproductive freedom,” she added. “Well, I’m a long-time teacher. And in my class we believe in facts. Here are some of them: Donald Trump overturned Roe – that’s a fact.
Abortion was never mentioned in Trump’s town hall.
Questionnaire consistently shows Harris and Trump neck and neck across the state. National rating points describe the race for Pennsylvania’s 19 electoral votes as a “toss-up.”
Although the Trump campaign event was one of the most unusual this cycle, involving his disclosure selling gold sneakers on stage in PhiladelphiaThe town hall concert wasn’t the only campaign event on Monday in Pennsylvania. Harris held a rally in Erie County, on the other side of the Commonwealth.
Monday begins another busy week the campaign is entering a decisive phase.
On Tuesday, Trump’s running mate, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), will also be in Montgomery County for town hall hosted by Moms for Americaconservative organization. Walz will be in western Pennsylvania. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden will also be in Philadelphia.
Harris will be in Philadelphia on Wednesday during Vance will hold a rally in Williamsport.
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