GLENDALE, Arizona – Thousands showed up for former President Donald Trump’s rally with Turning Point USA in Glendale, west of Phoenix, with many lining up overnight to get good seats.
Robert Kennedy Jr. joined Trump on Friday at the Desert Diamond Arena to show his support, having suspended his presidential campaign in Arizona and nine other battleground states just hours earlier. Kennedy said earlier at a press conference in downtown Phoenix that if he stayed in the race, it might allow Vice President Kamala Harris to win since he would take votes away from Trump.
Several candidates running for office in Arizona spoke before Trump, including congressional candidates and Kari Lake, who is running for U.S. Senate. Turning Point USA CEO Charlie Kirk said Americans are tired of sending $200 billion to Ukraine when the U.S.’s borders aren’t secure. He said American citizens should be prioritized over foreigners.
He expressed a theme that was prevalent with other speakers, stating that the Democrats are trying to prosecute and put Republicans in prison. When he mentioned that this may be the first time a Kennedy endorsed a Republican, the crowd launched into wild cheering.
Kirk criticized the mainstream media, saying its members have “monopolistic control.”
Furthermore, when talking about the 2022 election, Kirk said the “machines failed” and “Kari Lake should be governor of this state.”
Kirk noted that eight of the 10 wealthiest counties are around Washington D.C., where the powerhouses “tax you into oblivion so they can get wealthier.” He said the attempted assassination of Trump was “the most witnessed televised miracle in history” to roaring applause.
Lake spoke prior to Trump. She contrasted the rally with Harris rallies, “We don’t need to bus people in, we don’t need free concerts, because we love America.”
She pointed out that the mainstream media called Arizona’s late Senator Barry Goldwater “extreme.” She found it incredulous that “they’re calling a middle-aged mom like me a far-right extremist.” She said she’s “been right about everything” and is extremely worried about her “children’s future and what Ruben Gallego will do to this country.”
She took several shots at Ruben Gallego, who she is running against as a U.S. Senator. She said he is “to the left of Bernie Sanders and The Squad,” yet running ads to make him look like “a cross between Mr. Rogers and GI Joe.” She said he is “just Nancy Pelosi with a scruffy beard” and pointed out that when he served in the Arizona Legislature, his colleagues nicknamed him “the troll.”
Lake said his behavior towards women is offensive. He once told a Latina she wasn’t a Latina because she was a Republican. Lake said he left his wife, current Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego when she was nine months pregnant for a D.C. lobbyist.
He told donors the border isn’t his area of expertise and called the police “the bad guys.” She said he defrauded Medicare. “I’m telling you all this since the fake news media won’t cover it,” she said.
Lake added that the only people she wants to see out of a job are criminals related to illegal immigration, like the drug cartels and “the propagandists in the media.”
Lake said the number one cause of death among young people is fentanyl. Also, she called for the death penalty for “criminals who kill police officers in the line of duty.” She told all the law enforcement in the audience, “I’ve got your back since you’ve got my back.”
She said, “I will crack down on any school pushing gender insanity on our precious children. God did not put our kids in the wrong body. Democrats always say ‘trust the science.’ Well I do, and it says there are only two genders.”
Trump began his speech by pointing out that he got more votes in 2020 than in 2016, alluding to election fraud. He noted that, in contrast, former President Barack Obama got fewer votes the second time he ran for office yet still won.
He addressed Harris replacing President Joe Biden in the presidential race. “I was up 18 points, so they made Biden get out.” He said a friend told him he performed “too well” in the debate with Biden, since it prompted the Democrats to replace Biden. Trump noted that Harris was so unpopular when she ran for president in 2020 that she dropped out before the first state held its primary, Iowa.
Trump referred to Harris as a “radical left Marxist” who presided over the “worst border in history.” He said the Democratic Party is “the party of free healthcare for illegal aliens.” He said the “true divide” is between the “far left fascists” and “traditional family values.” He blasted the Democrats, “They want to arrest their political opponents and silence those who disagree.”
He called for making it a crime punishable by a year in prison for burning the American flag, alluding to how burning a pride flag or BLM flag can be prosecutable, unlike burning the American flag.
Trump cited his record, beating ISIS “in three weeks” instead of taking five years as expected.
“They slander us as a threat to democracy,” he said, which is a “talking point,” but “no, they’re a threat to democracy.”
Trump brought Kennedy Jr. up on stage and said he’s never had more people than now ask him to release the documents regarding the assassinations of Kennedy Jr.’s father, Robert Kennedy, and his uncle, President John F. Kennedy. He said he is going to create a panel to look into the epidemic of Americans with chronic health problems, something Kennedy champions.
Kennedy Jr. took the podium and said regulatory agencies like the FDA are run by the big food companies they regulate. He criticized the money the Biden administration sent to Ukraine, stating it belongs “back in the United States.” He warned, “A government that can silence its opponents has a license for any type of censorship.” Kennedy said, “Don’t you want a president that’s going to make America healthy again?”
Trump resumed speaking and said the Democrats flip-flopped at their national conference the past week. He said they talked about reducing taxes — but “they could have done that 3.5 years ago.” They talk about border security — but “all you have to do is tell the Border Patrol to shut the border down.” He displayed a chart on the overhead screen showing the stark increase in illegal immigration under the Biden administration.
He called Harris “the worst vice president in history” and the “only person to get nominated without one vote.” He discussed how “she destroyed San Francisco as district attorney.” He called her a “liar” who “makes up crap.” He pointed out that she claimed he would raise taxes when he said he would institute tariffs if another country imposed them on the U.S. He pointed out that he imposed tariffs on China, and there was no inflation. “Other presidents were afraid of China,” the former president said.
Trump discussed 325,000 migrant children who went missing during the Biden administration. He said they were either trafficked into sex slavery or dead. He was equally somber discussing the hostages seized by Hamas. He said they are “largely gone,” meaning Hamas killed them, so there is “nothing to negotiate.” He said if Hamas feared Biden and Harris, they wouldn’t have attacked Israel. Trump said Iran was broke. In contrast, under his leadership, he said if anyone buys oil from Iran, “they’ll never deal with the United States again.”
“Now, they laugh at our country,” he said. “Our country has become a joke.” Trump said the Biden administration is “importing MS-13 into our cities and high schools. … They have a license to shoot American police.” He said “deportations are at their lowest level.”
He continued to criticize Harris. “She called for abolishing ICE …. compared ICE agents to the KKK.”
He said she “wants to release criminal migrants into the country” but said “she might change her mind tonight” on that. He said Harris wants to give illegal immigrants Medicare and Social Security. However, one of her deciding votes in the Senate as vice president was to cut Medicare funding by $266 billion. Trump said Harris promised the 26 million illegal immigrants in the country amnesty the night before. He warned that it would bankrupt Medicare and Social Security.
Trump cited some crime statistics, such as violent crime increasing 43 percent under the Biden administration and aggravated assault increasing 89 percent. He reminded the crowd that Harris “encouraged her followers to donate” to help killers get bail.
He said he would reduce energy bills by over 50 percent as president and pass “large tax cuts.” He vowed to increase oil production and “take care of our country first.” He said he would “terminate the Green New Scam” and transfer the funding to infrastructure and roads. He promised to end the war in Ukraine — “as president-elect.” He said he would “end the weaponization of government against people, including myself.” He would “restore free speech — the fake news doesn’t allow it.” Trump concluded by stating that he will “secure our elections” and called for “a landslide that is too big to rig.”
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Rachel Alexander is a reporter at The Arizona Sun Times and The Star News Network. Follow Rachel on X / Twitter. Email tips to rachel.r.alexander@gmail.com.
Photo “Donald Trump and Robert Kennedy Jr.” by Team Trump.
