the former president will take the stage at MSG – NBC New York

Donald Trump finally has his moment at Madison Square Garden.

With just over a week before Election Day, the former president will do just that go on stage on Sunday at one of the nation’s most iconic venues, where he hosted a hometown rally where he delivered the closing message of his campaign against Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris.

The opening of the rally was a mixture of Trumpism, with an extended clip of the 1970 film “Patton,” a painting of an American flag with Trump in front of it and the words “God Bless America” ​​blaring from loudspeakers, and a stand-up routine by comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, full of lewd jokes, often referring to racist stereotypes about Latinos, Jews and blacks.

“I don’t know if you know this, but right now there is literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean. I think it’s called Puerto Rico,” said Hinchcliffe, whose joke was immediately picked up by the campaign of Democrat Kamala Harris, who is competing with Trump to woo Puerto Rican communities in Pennsylvania and other swing states.

Several critics blasted Hillary Clinton, a Democrat defeated by Trump eight years ago, for saying that Trump on Sunday would “reenact” the pro-Nazi Garden event in February 1939. One speaker, radio host Sid Rosenberg, used profanity to condemn the former secretary state.

“Hey, guys, now they’re arguing and trying to call us Nazis and fascists,” said Alina Habba, one of Trump’s lawyers, who hung a shiny jacket with “MAGA” written on it from the podium during her speech. “And you know what they claim, guys? It’s very scary. They claim that we will follow them and try to put them in jail. Well, isn’t that rich?

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Trump has condemned the four criminal charges against him as politically motivated. In recent weeks, he has stepped up his condemnation of “enemies from within,” naming domestic political rivals and suggesting he would use the military to pursue them.

The arena was packed hours before Trump was scheduled to speak. Outside the arena, the sidewalks were filled with Trump supporters wearing red “Make America Great Again” hats. There were plenty of security forces there. Streets were blocked and access to Penn Station restricted.

In the crowd was Philip D’Agostino, a longtime Trump supporter from Queens, the neighborhood where Trump grew up. The 64-year-old said it was appropriate for Trump to speak at a venue that bills itself as “the most famous arena in the world.”

“It just shows that he has a bigger fan base than any man who has ever lived,” D’Agostino said.

The rally is one of a series of tours Trump has made from battleground states, including a recent rally in Coachella, California – best known for the famous music festival named after that city – and a rally in Jersey Shore in May. This summer he campaigned in the South Bronx.

Although some Democrats and television pundits question Trump’s decision to label what they see as a vanity event, the rally guarantees Trump what he desires most: a spotlight, wall-to-wall coverage and a national audience.

To reach them, Trump spent hours appearing on popular podcasts. His campaign has produced viral moments, such as his visit to a McDonald’s restaurant last weekend, where he fried french fries and served supporters through a drive-thru window. A video of the stop posted as part of his campaign has been viewed more than 40 million times on TikTok alone.

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“He won’t just be talking to the attendees at Madison Square Garden. There will be people from battleground states, from all over the country,” said former Republican Lee Zeldin, a New York Republican and ally of the former president, who said Trump had talked from the beginning about holding the event here on his campaign trail.

Harris also traveled to non-battleground states to participate in major events designed to convey the national message. On Friday, she appeared in Houston with music superstar Beyoncé to talk about reproductive rights, and on Tuesday she will deliver her own closing remarks at the Ellipse in Washington, D.C., where Trump spoke before the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.

Trump will be joined at the rally by supporters including Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, who has spent tens of millions of dollars to boost his campaign.

Trump often compares himself to some of the country’s greatest artists. The former reality star has long spoken about her desire to hold a rally there in interviews and private conversations.

“Madison Square Garden is the center of the universe,” said Trump campaign senior adviser Jason Miller, noting the rich history of the venue that has hosted events including the 1971 “Fight of the Century.”

Home inspections could extend to the New York suburbs

In addition to the national spotlight and the appeal of appearing on one of the world’s most famous stages, Republicans in the state say the rally will also help candidates who did not receive votes.

There are several competitive congressional races in New York that could determine which party takes control of the House next year.

Zeldin ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2022, but did better than expected, driving turnout in competitive districts that helped House Republicans gain a slim majority. This underlined, in his view, the importance of the top end of the ticket doing as well as possible. He said the Garden event was sure to make news in areas with high-stakes races, such as suburban Long Island, where Trump held a crowded and raucous rally last month.

Trump will also use the break as a major fundraising opportunity as he continues to seriously lag Harris in the money race.

The native returns to the city that created and condemned him

New York hasn’t voted for a Republican for president in 40 years. But that doesn’t stop Trump from constantly insisting that he believes in victory.

“We think there’s a chance,” he said earlier this week on “The Brian Kilmeade Show,” pointing to frustration with the influx of migrants to the city and concerns about crime.

Trump routinely uses his hometown as a foil to audiences in other states, painting a dark vision of the city that bears little resemblance to reality. He rates it as crime-ridden and overrun by violent immigrant gangs that have taken over Fifth and Madison Avenues and occupied Times Square.

Trump has a complicated history with the place where he built his business empire, which has made him a tabloid and reality TV star. Last year, residents charged him with 34 crimes related to falsifying commercial documentation. He was found guilty in that case and found liable in civil court for business fraud and sexual exploitation.