New York Democrats and liberal media figures condemned President Trump’s campaign rally in the Bronx on Thursday and tried to discredit it before it even began.
New York Post report Between 8,000 and 10,000 supporters gathered in Crotona Park in the Bronx on Thursday, far exceeding the 3,500 the Trump campaign had initially expected, and the size of the crowd even surprised a CNN reporter at the event.
But progressive Democrats from New York Governor Kathy Hochle to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, as well as liberal journalists at MSNBC, complained that the racially diverse crowds were “fake” and shouldn’t be taken seriously.
Here are five of the most intense reactions from the left to the Bronx Trump rally.
Liberal journalists, Democrats lash out in attempt to discredit Trump’s Bronx rally: “Fake, fabricated”
Former U.S. President Donald Trump (center) at a campaign event at Crotona Park in the Bronx, New York City, Thursday, May 23, 2024. (Bing Guang/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“Fabricated, Fake Meetings” are full of “clowns”
Asked about Trump’s campaigning in heavily Democratic districts to court black and Latino voters, Hokele didn’t mince words.
“Jake, I’ll tell you a way that wouldn’t make any difference, and that’s for Donald Trump to take the reins and invite all of his clowns to a place like the Bronx,” she told CNN’s Jake Tapper during a rally of the former president’s supporters. “New York will never, ever support Donald Trump as president.”
“So if Mr. Trump wants to spend his time having these fake, fake rallies and pretending he has support, feel free to do so, because while you’re doing that, Donald Trump, Joe Biden is on the other side making sure they’re delivering for all Americans,” Haukl continued.
Gov. Kathy Hawkle was one of several New York Democrats who downplayed the large turnout at the Trump rally in the Bronx. (Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
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Stunt to “trick” New Yorkers into paying legal fees
Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat from New York, dismissed Trump’s rallies as a ploy to pay for his legal costs.
“He’s bankrupt. He has to pay his legal fees. And it’s kind of his job now to send buses of people out and collect those donations to go towards his legal fees,” she told MSNBC’s Chris Hayes on Wednesday.
Ocasio-Cortez doubled down on her accusations Thursday, accusing Trump of sending supporters from other states to “scam” her voters.
“But I think the Bronx knows better,” she told Spectrum News NY1.
Former President Donald Trump and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. (Left: REUTERS/Brian Snyder, Right: REUTERS/Sarah Silbiger)
“We saw a few years ago when some of his supporters tried to shut down the Whitestone Bridge,” Ocasio-Cortez said, “and I think it’s important to understand that there may be a lot of people in this park who are from outside New York City, or from the surrounding area or other areas, and we want to make sure people are safe given the noise that may be coming into the park.”
He called the rally a racist “signal” to his supporters and said it “has nothing to do with the Bronx.”
MSNBC political analyst Charles Blow argued that Trump will never win New York, said the rally attendees were not actually Bronx residents, and offered his opinion on why the leading presidential candidate would hold a rally in an area with a high minority population.
“He’s trying to send a signal to other people, white people in battleground states who don’t want to be seen as voting for a racist, to think, ‘Maybe he’s not a racist,’ and also shave off a few points among blacks and Hispanics who say, ‘I don’t want to vote for a racist,'” Blow said.
“People say, ‘Maybe he’s not as racist as they say,’ and this is a signal to other people, and it has nothing to do with New York, it has nothing to do with the Bronx,” he argued on MSNBC’s “The Leadout” on Thursday.
CNN analyst astonished by Trump’s surge in support among black voters: ‘It’s truly historic’
South Bronx voters voiced their support for former President Donald Trump, despite the county being predominantly Democratic.
“False campaign”
Liberal MSNBC host Alex Wagner also tried to discredit the rally on his show Thursday night.
She quoted New York Rep. Ritchie Torres, who described the rally as full of “immigrants,” before blasting it as a “fake election rally.”
“It’s a weird way to appeal to black and Latino voters, but Donald Trump gets it,” Wagner said sarcastically.
Her guest, Patrick Gaspard, president of the Center for American Progress, also called the rally a “scam.”
“They brought a lot of people to the Bronx. Let me be very clear: Donald Trump is not going to win the Bronx,” he told Wagner.
‘The View’ host Ana Navarro slams Latino Trump supporters for ‘very stupid behavior’
The Bronx, with its large Latino community, has been a Democratic stronghold for generations, and the rally comes as Trump seeks to attract more non-white voters. (Spencer Pratt/Getty Images)
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Pray for bad weather
Ocasio-Cortez also reacted with glee to the idea that a Trump rally might bring heavy rain to the area.
“God is good,” the Democratic congresswoman wrote to X, along with a praying hands emoji, in response to a post claiming the rally would be a “slushfest.”
Eventually, the rain cleared by the time the rally began, and thousands of people came out to support the former president and 2024 Republican presidential nominee.
Trump is the first Republican presidential candidate in decades to actively campaign in New York City for a general election, and if he accomplishes what many see as an impossible feat, he would win the city for the first time in 40 years.
Fox News’ Brandon Gillespie, Paul Steinhauser and Michael Lewis contributed to this report.
