RACINE, Wis. — Days after former President Donald Trump reportedly called Milwaukee a “bad city” during a private meeting with Republican lawmakers, he kicked off his Wisconsin rally Tuesday with a big show of love for the city 40 minutes north.
“I love Milwaukee! I chose Milwaukee,” the former president said, referring to the Republican National Convention being held there next month.
“We have to fix the crimes. We all know that. We have to make sure the elections are fair,” he continued.
Trump’s typically incoherent rally remarks covered most of the issues that have come up in the election, including former President Barack Obama escorting Biden off the stage at a fundraiser over the weekend.
Tuesday’s rally was Trump’s first appearance in the key battleground state since his conviction, and he appeared to enjoy talking about the “indictment.”
Trump joked that Biden was saying the media was manipulating his photos. “On that point, I have to defend the media,” the former president joked, to the delight of the crowd.
The presumptive Republican nominee has declared that black and Hispanic voters will vote for him this fall.
He said he was also focusing on illegal immigration, saying South American countries were sending criminals to the southern border who then committed crimes against American citizens.
“That’s why black people and Hispanics are voting for me at levels never before seen in this country,” Trump said, saying illegal immigrants are taking American jobs.
According to network polls, Trump’s approval rating among black voters has tripled from 7% this time in 2020 to 21% now.
“Remember, with Donald Trump, there’s no tax on tips,” he said to loud cheers, referring to a campaign promise he made at a recent Las Vegas rally. “I’m leading the young demographic in numbers that nobody’s ever seen before.”
“I’m the party of common sense,” Trump continued. “We’re the party of common sense,” he argued, “This isn’t a conservative thing or a liberal thing.”
To huge cheers from the crowd, Trump promised that he wouldn’t give “one penny to any school that requires vaccinations or mask wearing.”
“I’m going to keep boys out of girls’ sports,” he continued. “Why would I say that?”
Trump also criticized critical race theory and “transgenderism.”
Trump supporters waiting to enter Festival Park for the former president’s Racine rally were met with tables and carts loaded with MAGA and red, white and blue merchandise, creating an atmosphere similar to that on the Brooklyn Bridge over the weekend.
James traveled from Spring Grove, Illinois, to hear Trump speak. As he waited to enter the rally, he told The Washington Post he expected the former president to talk about “bringing together communities that have been marginalized for so long.”
“They say [Trump] “I hate gay people,” said James, who is returning to school. “I’m gay, but I see the community coming together.”
Janet, 64, from Illinois, told the Post she wanted to know who Trump’s running mate would be, but didn’t expect the announcement to come on Tuesday. [Trump] I intend to make a difference and do the right thing.”
Janet joked that she would like Tucker Carlson to be President Trump’s vice president, but would also be happy with South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem.
Conservative state and local leaders urged attendees to bring friends and family who normally don’t vote to the polls, assuring them that those who didn’t vote were in fact Trump supporters.
State Democratic Party Chairman Ben Wikler I posted a video Last week, Biden told his supporters that people who didn’t vote were actually closet Biden supporters.
Racine County is a presidential battleground with the last few elections decided by just a few percentage points. Biden won the Badger State by just 0.63 percentage points in 2020.
A poll released yesterday showed former President Biden widening his 2020 eight-point lead in Iowa to 18 points. If this significant increase is correct, it could mean an uphill battle in battleground states such as Wisconsin, where former President Biden is running neck-and-neck with Trump.
