President Donald Trump rallied his Georgia supporters for more than an hour and a half in Macon Friday night heading into the final two weeks before the November election. A series of recent polls show Trump and former vice president Joe Biden neck-and-neck in Georgia, which Trump won in 2016 by 5 points.
On hand in the hours before the rally kicked off were a Who’s Who of state GOP leaders-- Gov. Brian Kemp, Sen. David Perdue, Sen. Kelly Loeffler, former Georgia governor and current Agriculture Sec. Sonny Perdue, Ralph Reed, and 14th district GOP nominee Marjorie Taylor Greene. Also there-- state Rep. Vernon Jones, a Democrat who has endorsed Trump, who gave an early pep talk to the crowd and finished up by crowd surfing across the top of the raucous Trump fans.
It was one of a barrage of campaign trips Trump has planned now through the November election. Earlier Friday, Trump rallied a crowd in Ocala, Fla.. With early voting already under way here, Trump headed to Middle Georgia to drum up votes from his most reliable supporters in rural areas of the state.
A live blog of the event follows:
9:03: Big finish: “We have made America proud again, we will make America safe again, and we will make America great again”
9:01: “Early voting has begun...so get out and vote early. A giant red wave is coming, from Atlanta to August and from Marietta to right here in Macon, Ga.”
8:58: “In conclusion.....” Trump promises to protect the 2nd amendment, to keep the U.S. military strong, end surprise medical billing, protect patients with pre-existing conditions, to “restore patriotic education to our schools."
8:52: An hour and a half into his speech, Trump is still talking. Listing more accomplishments, with crowd staying put.
8:49: Trump touts his “Platinum Plan,” which he says will give access to capital, school choice, and other benefits to black communities. “With the exception of Abraham Lincoln, no one has done more for the black community."
8:44: The president singles out GOP nominee in the 14th congressional district, QAnon candidate, Marjorie Taylor Greene. “And somebody I think is fantastic, Marjorie Taylor Greene. You really are unbelievable.”
8:39: The president names the rest of the congressional delegation at the rally and then Agriculture Sec. Sonny Perdue. He also name checks Bubba McDonald and Tricia Pridemore, public service commissioners. He then introduces GOP chairman David Shafer
8:38: Trump points to Sen. Kelly Loeffler and Rep. Doug Collins, who are running against each other in a November special election for Senate. Trump says Loeffler’s husband “is a very successful guy. That’s a good thing. He loves his wife," and adds that Loeffler was “100% with me” on the impeachment. “Great job Kelly. Great job. Her only problem is she’s running against a great guy, Doug Collins. Great guy. Where’s Doug? He’s a warrior, she’s a warrior. You know who the biggest winner is going to be? Trump.”
8:37: Trump tackles Jon Ossoff: “He’s a radical left Schumer Pelosi guy. We defeated him once. We’ll defeat him again.”
8:35: Trump praises Kemp for re-opening the state.
8:33: Trump mentions Gov. Brian Kemp. Says he was told before he endorsed Kemp, “He’s Trump all the way.” “He beat Stacey” referring to Stacey Abrams in 2018. “She has Oprah, she had Barack Obama. All Brian had was Trump.”
8:31: More COVID- “The vaccine will end the pandemic once and for all. The vaccine, they hate me to say it, is looking really great....it’s ending without the vaccine, but the vaccine will end it quicker.”
8:26: Talking about COVID-- “99.99-something percent of children” are not affected by it he says. “Barron tested positive. When I finally saw the doctor, I asked, ‘How it he?’ He said, ‘It’s gone.’ It’s gone. And then you’re immune. That’s why they have to get kids back to school."
“Biden’s plan will crush America. My plan will crush the virus and America will be stronger.”
8:21: On “the squad": “AOC, she knows nothing about the environment. It’s a lot of bullsh*t.” How about Ilhan Omar? I’m going to win Minnesota because of Ilhan Omar. She hates our country.”
8:20: “This election is a choice between a Trump recovery and a Biden depression...a depression the likes of which this country has never seen if they pass these crazy rules with the Green New Deal.”
8:18: On his COVID diagnosis: “Two weeks ago, I wasn’t feeling great. They gave me something called ‘Regeneron’ and the next day I felt like Superman. We’re going to get it for everyone who needs it. They call it a therapeutic, I call it a cure."
8:16: “Do we have any seniors in the house? We’re proud to be seniors.” The president warns Biden will “decimate” Medicare and Social Security by allowing undocumented immigrants to come into the country.
“When I’m president, no one will touch your Medicare. No one will touch your Social Security.”
8:15: Trump mentions Amy Coney Barrett, gets one of his biggest cheers of the night. “She was so much more talented than the people trying to embarrass her. No notes," he says. When Sen. John Cornyn asked Barrett to show the committee the notes she had used during the lengthy hearing, she held up a blank sheet of paper.
8:14: More warnings about Democrats-- ″They want to confiscate your guns, drive God from the public square."
8:11: More warnings about the “radical left.” -- “The cities run by Republicans are doing great. But the ones run by the radical left....” Trump points to New York and says it’s fallen apart since he left and lists other cities run by Democrats, including Atlanta.
“Atlanta. Look at Atlanta. It’s so sad what’s going on.”
8:10: On the GOP: “I want the Republican Party to get tougher. They let these lunatics get away with things. Like, you can’t spy on a campaign. You can’t try to take out a duly elected president of the United States and get away with it.”
8:09: “I saved your 2nd amendment, by the way.” Loud applause.
8:07: “And you know who loves Trump because of law & order? Suburban women.” “I heard they like my policy, but they don’t like my personality....They don’t care about my personality.” After cheers from the crowd, he adds, “They like my personality.”
8:06: “Law enforcement is on our side. Joe couldn’t say, ‘Law and order.’ Because he needs the votes of the radical left.”
8:04: I want to find out who won on November 3rd.
8:03: On election security, the president warns that “they” have found ballots in a garbage can and in a river and that his name was left off of some ballots.
8:02: Trump questions “phony ballots.” “Whose sending them? What the hell are they doing? And if you question it, you’re against freedom.”
8:00: Trump looking ahead. “We are doing an incredible job in this country. And it is going to be a Red Wave next week. There is going to be a Red Wave."
7:59: Trump warns that America will become like Venezuela if Biden wins. “If he wins, the Radical Left will be running this country.”
7:57: Trump talks up Bernie Sanders: “It should have been Bernie. Elizabeth Warren, Pocahontas, should have gotten out earlier.”
“Bernie is the nicest loser...Crazy Bernie.”
“We’re going to get a lot of Bernie people....all Elizabeth Warren had to do was leave the campaign.”
7:56: More riffing on Hunter Biden. “Ah, what a family.”
7:55: The president asks if his campaign could move the press section further back to be all the way behind the crowd. “We’ll have a new t-shirt tomorrow- Move Them Back.”
“The ‘Where’s Hunter?' t-shirt has been one of the great successes,” he says.
7:52: Trump says his opponents were glad when he was diagnosed with COVID. “'Trump tested positive.' They were so happy. But I got out right away...12 minutes later here we are."
7:51: Speaking about the southern border, "We’re building 10 miles of wall per day. And Mexico IS paying for the wall, you know know that, don’t you?”
7:50: Trump talking about what he sees as his top achievements-- in Minnesota and Maine. “Take a look in Minneapolis. The place was burning down.”
7:49: “I fight harder for you than any president has ever fought.”
7:47: “I’m smart. I’m smart...remember I used to say, ‘Being presidential is easy?’
7:46: Talking about COVID-19: “Over 200,000 that’s terrible...But we saved millions.”
7:24: Talking about the NBC town hall with Savannah Guthrie last night: “You see the anger last night. The anger...this is the Fake News, you’re seeing it. I am so glad I’ve exposed them for what they are. If they were truthful, our country would come together so fast."
7:42: Trump asks who is the greatest Georgian? “Herschel Walker!” Walker spoke at the RNC to endorse Trump earlier this year.
7:41: Trump: “Nobody has achieved what we have achieved. Ever.”
7:40: Trump calls Twitter removing the article from the New York Post reporting on Hunter Biden “the second biggest political scandal ever.”
7:37: Trump calls the Biden family “a criminal enterprise." The crowd chants “Lock them up!”
“Lock em up?” Trump says. "They should lock up the Bidens. Lock Hillary up. Can you imagine if my kids did what Hunter did? My Ivanka, my beautiful Ivanka...”
7:30: “It’s time to send a message to these wealthy liberal hypocrites.”
7:25: “Sleepy Joe is the embodiment of the current political class that led this country down the drain.”
7:20: Trump says Biden “is the worst candidate in the history of candidates....I actually wish it was a good candidate."
7:15: President Trump takes the stage to God Bless the U.S.A. “We love Georgia. We love Georgia," he told the cheering crowd, which was well over 1,000 as he spoke.
Earlier:
5:33 pm: Kemp takes the stage to “Eye of the Tiger,” and kicks off by reminding people he beat Stacey Abrams in 2018. “Just wanted to make sure you all knew that!” Kemp ticks off the accomplishments he’s proud of since taking office-- a teacher pay raise, increased funding for mental health services, and, he adds, “If you saw the news yesterday, we have continued to reform our health care system.”
Giving a final rally cry ahead of the president’s speech, Kemp told the crowd: “There is a red wall and I’m looking at it!”
5:42 pm: Agriculture Sec. Sonny Perdue talks Trump up and gives the stage to his cousin, GOP Sen. David Perdue, who is up for re-election in November. “Help me welcome my cousin, David Perdue!” Sonny Perdue shouted out.
5:45 pm: Sen. Perdue says Trump is the only person who could have achieved what he has, including moving the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. (Huge cheers.)
More is coming, Perdue says. “Next week we will confirm Amy Coney Barrett, mark my words!”
Perdue adds that God had a hand in making Donald Trump president. “This guy is providential. He didn’t happen by accident," Perdue says. “How in the world in our political system could Donald J. Trump come on the scene in 2016 do what he did? Tell me. God’s watching!”
He goes on to warns that Biden has already said he will raise taxes, wants to stack the Supreme Court, and will deliver “radical socialism” to the country.
Before wrapping up, Perdue seems to deliberately struggle with his fellow senator Kamala Harris’ name, to the delight of the crowd. “Kamala? Kamala? Kamala-mala-mala? I don’t know. Whatever.”
The president is scheduled to speak at 7:00 pm.
Come back for updates...
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