Former President Donald Trump spent his Halloween evening in Arizona, missing out on trick-or-treating for a meandering live show with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson.
Both Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris visited Arizona on Thursday, making their final pitch to voters in the swing state as polls show the race locked in a razor-thin margin days before Election Day.
Sitting on leather chairs with a backdrop of American flags, Carlson, a former Fox News commentator, threw softball questions at Trump, who for about 90 minutes covered years of familiar material in rambling stories. The overall theme showcased himself as someone who would return to the White House with a record of past successes.
“We defeated ISIS, we had no wars,” Trump said about his four years in office. “We had the best economy in the history of our country.”
If he wins next week, it’ll be the “biggest event in the history of the country,” he said. Though he saw himself as the clear front-runner, he also raised concerns about Democrats “cheating.”
The revved-up fans packing Glendale’s Desert Diamond Arena seemed to enjoy the show, though some left before it was over. The stadium has a capacity of about 18,000 for similar events, and most seats seemed to be filled.
Trump spent time talking about immigration and border control, calling it the biggest issue of them all. He claimed countries all over the world were sending prisoners and street gangs to the United States.
“We’re going to have to do a very large deportation,” he said. “It can’t be sustained.”
He moved seamlessly from immigration to trans women in sports to SpaceX rockets to the moustache of his former national security adviser John Bolton. He peppered his comments with a casual viciousness, calling Harris, Bolton and others “stupid.”
Trump called Liz Cheney, the former Wyoming congresswoman and a frequent critic of Trump’s, “dumb.” Then he added, “She’s a radical warhawk. Let’s put her with a rifle standing there with nine barrels shooting at her. OK? Let’s see how she feels about it. You know, when the guns are trained on her face.”
RFK Jr. pushes Make America Healthy Again theme
Entertainers including Utah comedian Jason Hewlett kicked off the event, which began at about 6:30 p.m. But the pre-show soon took on a serious tone, with warnings of a conspiracy to sicken Americans with disease and obesity as a new priority along with the economy or the border.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the former Democratic and independent presidential candidate who quit his party and endorsed Trump in August, added a health angle to the issues of the night, but with a strong conspiratorial angle.
“We are being mass-poisoned by Big Pharma and Big Food,” he said, adding that the news media has covered up the corruption leading to many chronic diseases such as diabetes. The arena crowd cheered and stood in support when he said his health regimen includes 30 minutes of prayer each day.
Trump promised to put him in charge of health and medicine issues if he gets elected, he said.
RFK Jr.’s former running mate, Nicole Shanahan, also spoke at the event, calling Trump an ally for supporting skepticism of vaccines and saying she was voting for Trump for the first time.
Trump, during his talk, indicated he supported the former Democrat as a possible Cabinet member, but said Kennedy would have to accept his administration’s pro-oil stance.
Carlson pumps up Trump to crowd before talk
Carlson warmed up the crowd before Trump came on with a lengthy explanation of why government bureaucrats and profiteers don’t like the former president. Federal investigators and officials see Trump as a “mortal threat” because he “tells the truth” and exposes the grifters profiting off bad government, Carlson said.
“They think it’s their right to be in charge,” he said of the unnamed enemies.
Carlson’s speech, like Trump’s, often wandered around a wide range of subjects and anecdotes. He took a moment to mention that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., has the same last name as a conquistador and that “masculinity is still an indispensable thing.”
Trump is the “brave man” America needs “because it’s a rough world” and Trump proved himself by displaying the “instinct” of leadership after he got shot.
Halloween event brings out costumes
Most of the crowd wore typical Trump-rally outfits, sporting Trump swag and lots of red, white and blue, but a few wore costumes for the Oct. 31 event.
Several wore safety vests, posing as trash collectors after President Joe Biden’s apparent statement that Trump supporters are “garbage.” Others wore garbage bags.
Theresa Hilding of Chino Valley dressed in a toga with a sash promoting Kennedy’s Make America Healthy Again theme.
The Glendale event was Trump’s third trip to the state in October. He rallied supporters in Prescott Valley on Oct. 13 and returned for a rally at Arizona State University last week.
Trump made national news during his rally in Tempe when he likened the nation to a “garbage can” for the rest of the world when it comes to illegal immigration.
The Thursday event is also the last stop on Carlson’s nationwide tour and is billed as a relief benefit for people impacted by recent hurricanes on the East Coast.
(This story has been updated with new information.)
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Publish date : 2024-10-31 23:42:00
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