At the rally in Harrisburg, the president said the media should be given “a big, fat, failing grade” over their coverage of his achievements during his first 100 days and told the cheering crowd he was “thrilled to be more than 100 miles from Washington”.
He quipped that at the same time “a large group of Hollywood actors and Washington media are consoling themselves” at the correspondents’ dinner “that will be very boring”.
Until now, late president Ronald Reagan was the last US leader to miss the dinner, as he was recovering from a gunshot wound in 1981.
Turning to his election pledges, Mr Trump said the first 100 days had been “very exciting and very productive”.
He said he was “delivering every single day” by:
Ending “jobs theft” and bringing them back to the US
Easing regulations on energy exploration
Ending the so-called “war on coal”
Pulling out of international agreements not beneficial to the US, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership
Mr Trump also said the administration of Barack Obama had resulted in “a mess”, stressing that he was ready for “great battles to come and we will win in every case”.
On climate change, Mr Trump said “a big decision” would be taken within the next two weeks.
Trump usually runs away from criticism, like when he skipped a Fox News debate after receiving tough questions from moderator Megyn Kelly about his improper treatment of women.
President Trump claimed his 100-day rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday night broke attendance records, though journalists pointed out rows of empty seats at the expo center where the event was held.
Trump says "we have a lot of ppl standing outside" and he "broke the all time record" in this arena. There are rows of empty seats here pic.twitter.com/ixbErKjrQu
Here's another part of the arena where Trump says people have been left standing outside. Lots of ppl here, but not at all capacity pic.twitter.com/M6gtVF0PhN
Trump held his rally in Harrisburg, Pa., instead of attending the White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) dinner. He mocked media members attending the dinner as “trapped” at what he called a “very, very boring” event.
“They would love to be with us right here tonight,” Trump said, adding his rally drew a “much larger crowd, and better people, too.”
Trump routinely brags about the size of crowds at his rallies and accuses the media of lying about the crowd size, including for his presidential inauguration in January.
Those five words have already led to a lawsuit against President Donald Trump. But Trump continued to use them Saturday night at a rally celebrating his first 100 days in office.
According to CNN, Kashiya Nwanguma, Molly Shah and Henry Brousseau attended a Trump rally in Louisville, Kentucky in March 2016 to protest. When they did so, however, Trump took notice and said from the podium, “Get them out of here.”
The protesters then say they were pushed out of the venue as Trump supporters yelled at them, per the Washington Post. In a suit filed this year, the three are accusing several supporters of assault and battery and Trump himself of incitement to riot, negligence, gross negligence and recklessness. They say Trump should have known that his words would have sparked violence.
That case is still making its way through the legal system, but on April 1, a federal judge in Kentucky ruled that it was plausible that Trump’s words has incited violence and ruled that the lawsuit could proceed, a defeat for Trump’s legal team, per the Louisville Courier-Journal.
On Saturday, however, Trump was hosting another rally in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, when another protest seemed to break out. Trump stopped his speech to say, “That’s right, get him out of here. Get him out.” The crowd then began to chant, “USA!” as Trump watched. Trump resumed by saying “Thank you” and then praising law enforcement.
Another social media post showed multiple law enforcement officials restraining a protester on the ground. A key argument of Trump’s legal team in the current lawsuit is that his comments were clearly directed at law enforcement officials, not supporters, but Hale rejected that claim.
Cops throw angry protester to the ground. He's not leaving quietly. "Get him out of here," Trump says. pic.twitter.com/kOCKdO89rH
Two of the original protesters who are being sued for the events of the Louisville rally have since filed claims saying they took Trump’s words as a directive towards them to remove the protesters. Because of this, the two supporters say, Trump should be held liable for their actions, not them, according to the Associated Press.
After Donald Trump compared it to a “war zone” on Tuesday, the city of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, joined the parents of a dead soldier, our country’s fire marshals, Paul Ryan and a human baby as the most recent addition to Donald Trump’s ever-growing list of mortal enemies.
At a rally in Virginia, Trump said the city of 49,673, which he had flown into the night before, “looked like a war zone where you (once had) these massive plants,” according to the Associated Press.
Ben Jacobs, a reporter for The Guardian, said the words came shortly before noon Tuesday.
Trump said Harrisburg PA "looked like a war zone" from his plane
Tuesday night, Harrisburg fired back, saying in a statement that Trump made “an unfortunate mistake” disparaging the city “after a mere glance from the window of his airplane.”
Mr. Trump has made an unfortunate mistake in disparaging Pennsylvania’s capital city after a mere glance from the window of his airplane. Harrisburg is renowned as the heart of our commonwealth and a capital of unique beauty and charm.
Mr. Trump should know that Harrisburg and its residents are an integral part of the United States, which he is vying to lead. Its rich history and natural beauty have won both the respect and acclaim of some of America’s greatest leaders and patriots.
With a crowd of thousands still piling into the stands and onto the dirt floor, the PA system at the Farm Show Complex’s large arena crackled to life with an unusual announcement, one it had likely never made before.
“If you see a protester, do not harm them. This is a peaceful event,” said the man’s voice on the other end.
It was an unusual public appeal, not only for the venue, but also given the context.
This was a presidential campaign stop by a presidential front runner.
But Donald Trump’s campaign has been unusual in almost every-way. Unusual in its nose-thumbing at political leaders. Unusual in its imperviousness. Unusual in its polarizing effect.
And so it was no more than five minutes into Trump’s event Thursday, with thousands still in a line snaking around the palatial Complex, that the first protester was spotted.
“Get him out. Get him out,” Trump said with a swipe of his hand.
Minutes later there was a second one, this time chanting “Black Lives Matter.” The man was snatched up by police and rushed through a cattle chute and into the hallways outside.
Halfway into the event, ejections of protesters had become so commonplace that Trump developed a rhythm.
“Aren’t Trump rallies fun,” he said to uproarious applause.
“The protesters are giving up ’cause we like it, we have fun with it,” he added.
And they certainly did.
But for every dissenter inside, there were more out.Donald Trump protesters outside of rally in HarrisburgMore than a hundred protesters faced off with Donald Trump supporters outside of Trump’s rally in Harrisburg on April 21, 2016.
Outside the building, hundreds of protesters had gathered, growing from just a handful earlier in the day. After the event, they faced off with Trump supporters as they filed out of the arena and toward their cars.
They traded barbs earlier in the day, which later escalated into verbal threats and taunts.
Inside, Trump got in on it, too.
“Let him go. He’s got no voice. I can’t even hear him,” Trump said of one protester before commending police for the speed of their extraction.
A Capitol Police officer told PennLive that protesters would be told to leave the building and could face arrest if they returned. The officer added that some could be arrested on the spot depending on the severity of the disturbance they created. That did not appear to be the case on Thursday. But there was at least one person taken into police custody outside, before the event ended and the unrest grew.
During his speech, Trump took aim at his detractors, insinuating the protest movement was something other than homegrown.
He said protesters in New York, when pressed by media, expressed ambivalence about their anti-Trump message or favor for the candidate himself. He pointed to signs and placards he said appeared mass-produced, hinting at a third party’s involvement.
But those outside the Harrisburg event said their own convictions led them to protest his appearance here.
One of them, Keith Bentz of Harrisburg, blamed Trump and his campaign for a divisive tone that he feels has the nation “splitting itself down the middle.”
Another man, Michael Betsill of Harrisburg, helped organize Thursday’s protest through social media platforms, and said of Trump, “what other campaign has caused this ever? What other candidate has ever caused so much chaos among a nation and that’s why we’re here.”
He added, “Everybody that’s involved and seems to be supporting [Trump’s campaign] has one vision for what America should be. America is already great, there’s not one person who is gonna make this country great again.”
Across the police barrier, Trump supporters dismissed characterizations of the campaign or Trump’s message as racially incendiary and said the protesters were likely just supporters of a political opponent, such as Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders.
Ryan Leonard said Trump’s stance on issues like immigration weren’t about race, but about “what’s right and what’s wrong, what’s legal and illegal.”
Another supporter, Chanse Firestone of Denver, Pa., said it wasn’t about race, but rather the refusal of some in this country to buy into the American Dream.
“Everybody says it’s about race. It’s not about race. It’s about putting America to work.”
Around him, other supporters shouted “get a job,” and “no more handouts,” at members of the opposing group. There was a moment when the sides pushed in toward the middle and a flashpoint seemed inevitable.
But cooler heads prevailed.
Inside the event, meanwhile, Trump was back on the subject of his protesters, saying most were there to disrupt and agitate.
But he assured the rabid crowd of thousands that he was in control.
“Remember what I said, the safest place on earth is a Trump rally.”
