Former President Trump kicked off the final week of his campaign in midtown Manhattan on Sunday with a rally at Madison Square Garden.
The Trump campaign featured numerous celebrity speakers to excite the crowd. And while Trump is unlikely to be competitive in New York on Election Day, the event generated significant media attention and served as a way to deliver something of a closing message to voters. However, some of the previous speakers overshadowed the event with their inflammatory rhetoric.
Here are five takeaways:
Trump’s closing message seems familiar
The former president’s Madison Square Garden rally was advertised as the first salvo of his final pitch to voters just nine days before Election Day.
Traces of the closing message were scattered throughout Trump’s speech. He began his speech by asking attendees if things were better than they were four years ago.
“Kamala keeps breaking it, but I’m going to fix it. And we will fix it.” Trump later said, as supporters sitting backstage waved signs that said, “Trump will fix it.”
But those who wanted a clearer, more concise message heard more of the same as Trump repeated the same attacks on Vice President Harris’ intelligence and described the United States as an “occupied country” due to a surge in immigration at the southern border. He emphasized plans to impose tariffs on foreign imports and companies that outsource production.
The former president repeated many of the same anecdotes he has told at other rallies, including anecdotes about watching a SpaceX launch and claiming that New York City Mayor Eric Adams has been indicted on federal corruption charges for speaking out about the city’s surge in immigration.
Trump introduces famous allies
Honorees include former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, billionaire Elon Musk, Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), Donald Trump Jr., Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Hulk Hogan and Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.). You have been selected. A stage ahead of the former president.
Former First Lady Melania Trump made an extremely unusual appearance by attending a campaign event, making brief remarks and introducing her husband.
Although multiple speakers are unlikely to persuade voters, their presence could generate enthusiasm among less trustworthy voting groups, such as Trump supporters and young men.
Musk and Carlson, in particular, have become popular with Trump’s base and have taken more active roles on the trail in the closing weeks of the campaign.
“This is a real election war. So, make sure you get your friends and family to vote. Make sure they vote. Vote early. “This is important,” said Musk, receiving praise from the crowd.
Carlson spoke at a Trump rally in Georgia last week and is scheduled to host an event with the former president in Arizona on Thursday.
Musk has supported major super PACs working to drum up voting efforts for the Trump campaign, spending millions of dollars on that effort. He also campaigned in the key battleground state of Pennsylvania, even as some of his efforts to register swing voters have come under legal scrutiny.
Guest speaker sparks controversy
The parade of guest speakers that preceded Trump appeared intent on hurling racist and sexist insults and creating controversial headlines for the party.
Comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, aka Kill Tony, delivered a set that included inflammatory attacks on Puerto Ricans.
“There’s a lot going on. I don’t know if you’re aware of this, but it seems like there’s literally an island of garbage floating in the middle of the ocean right now. I think it’s called Puerto Rico,” Hinchcliffe said. crowd.
Harris campaign aides pointed out that Vice President Hinchcliffe made this remark during a speech at a Puerto Rican restaurant in Philadelphia. There she detailed plans to support the island and strengthen its power grid. Others have pointed out that the main battleground in Pennsylvania is home to hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans.
Carlson mocked Harris’ racial identity.
Sid Rosenberg, a New York City radio host whose show Trump regularly calls, criticized Democrats in derogatory and explicit terms.
“She’s a sick bastard named Hillary Clinton. “What a disgusting son of a bitch,” he said of the former secretary of state and 2016 Democratic candidate. “It’s the whole fucking party. A bunch of degenerates.”
One speaker described Harris as “the devil” and “the antichrist.”
Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani used part of his remarks to incite fear about Palestinians. They said Palestinians “learned how to kill us at the age of two” and were “on the side of terrorists.”
“Usually pre-game speeches don’t really matter. “All of Trump’s MSG warm-up behavior, which is quite notable, is creating controversy and content that will hurt him,” David Plouffe, a senior adviser to the Harris campaign, posted on X. ”
Trump repeats attack on ‘enemy within’
The former president has drawn a backlash from Democrats in recent weeks by repeatedly referring to his political rivals as “enemies within” and asserting that his opponents are worse than foreign enemies.
On Sunday, Trump defended and reiterated that line.
“If you say you are an enemy inside, the other person will go crazy. It sounds like – ‘Oh, how can he say…’” Trump said. “No, they have done very bad things to this country. They are actually the enemy within. But this is the man we are fighting against.”
He later denounced the media as “enemies of the people.”
President Trump has used the phrase repeatedly in recent weeks, including in an interview with Fox News when he suggested he might use the military to suppress protests by critics. Those comments were at the center of criticism from his former senior White House aides and the Harris campaign.
The former president’s call for such harsh attacks on his critics comes as some Republicans argue that Democrats are taking their rhetoric too far by labeling Trump a fascist.
Another tax proposal
Trump introduced one new policy, one that mirrored what his opponent first proposed.
“Today, I am announcing a new policy to provide tax credits to family caregivers who care for a parent or loved one. “It’s time for them to be recognized,” Trump said.
Earlier this month, Harris introduced a new plan to expand Medicare benefits to allow the program to cover the cost of long-term home care for older Americans. It is a plan to help the ‘sandwich generation’ who must support both their children and their elderly parents.
President Trump has previously called for eliminating taxes on tipped wages, overtime pay and Social Security benefits, but some experts have questioned how he would pay for the tax cuts without widening the deficit.
