Former President Donald Trump attended a rally in New Jersey on Saturday, again blaming President Joe Biden for the court cases he is facing as the probable Republican nominees prepare to square off in the November 2024 presidential election.
Blasting President Biden as “a total moron,” Trump repeatedly described the cases against him as politically motivated and timed to hurt his campaigning ability in front of a gathering of almost 100,000 people.
“He is a fool. “He’s not a smart man,” Trump stated about Biden. “I talk about him differently now because now the gloves are off.”
Lisa Fagan, a spokesman for the city of Wildwood, where the protest was held, told The Associated Press that she estimated a throng of approximately 100,000 people based on her personal observations on the ground Saturday, having witnessed “dozens” of prior events in the same place.
Several high-profile endorsers joined Trump on stage, including North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum and NFL Hall of Fame linebacker Lawrence Taylor, who pleaded guilty to misdemeanor criminal charges of sexual misconduct and patronizing an underage prostitute in New York in 2011.
The beachfront gathering, described by Rep. Jeff Van Drew, R-N.J., as the largest political gathering in state history, was intended to serve as a show of force at a critical time for Trump, who is facing dozens of felony charges in four separate criminal cases with the election less than six months away.
Massive Crow of Trump Supporters
Thousands of Trump supporters, dressed in “Never Surrender” T-shirts and red “Make America Great Again” hats, gathered onto the sand between the boardwalk and carnival attractions to meet the former Republican president hours before he took the stage.
“The everyday American people are 100% behind him,” said Doreen O’Neill, a 62-year-old Philadelphia nurse.
“They have to cheat and smear him and humiliate him in that courtroom every single day,” O’Neill stated. “This country is going to go insane if they steal the election again.”
Trump has repeatedly accused the Biden administration and Democratic leaders in New York of exploiting the court system to prevent his return to the White House. Prosecutors claim the former president breached the law to conceal an affair with a porn performer that would have jeopardized his first presidential campaign.
On Saturday, Trump said that even those he accuses of politically motivated indictments did not pursue every case they could, citing the boosts his campaign has received with each wave of accusations.
“I heard they were going to do a couple of other things and they said from Washington … ‘we’re indicting him into the White House,'” Trump stated. “They said, ‘Don’t do it.'”
Gag Order from New York Judge
While Trump seized on his legal difficulties on Saturday, a judge’s gag order — and the possibility of incarceration — limit his ability to publicly remark on witnesses, jurors, and anyone involved in the New York trial, which is anticipated to last most of the month. The court in the case has already fined Trump $9,000 for breaking the injunction and warned him he might face jail time if he does not comply.
The order makes no mention of Judge Juan M. Merchan, whom Trump described as “highly conflicted,” or District Attorney Alvin Bragg, both of whom Trump claimed are “doing the bidding for crooked Joe Biden.”
Trump’s role as a defendant has reduced his capacity to persuade voters on the campaign trail.
He spent last week’s off-day from court in Wisconsin and Michigan, both battleground states for the general election. And on Saturday, he campaigned with tens of thousands of voters in New Jersey, a solidly Democratic state.
Parts of New Jersey contain deep-red enclaves, and the southern shoreline in particular attracts tourists and summer homeowners from neighboring Pennsylvania, a vital swing state.
Saturday’s trip to the New Jersey Shore resort was not Trump’s first.
While president, Trump staged a rally in January 2020 to celebrate Van Drew, a New Jersey congressman who had recently defected from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party in response to the former president’s first impeachment.
Trump drew a crowd that lined the streets, packed bars, and supported countless merchants in what is typically a sleepy city in the winter. The summer season is almost here for the resort noted for its large beaches, boardwalk games, and shops.
Wildwood is located in New Jersey’s 2nd District, which Van Drew has served for three terms and includes all or part of six counties in southern New Jersey. It voted for Trump in 2016 and again in 2020, despite previously supporting Barack Obama.
