If one thing is sure to fire up President Donald Trump, it’s an accurate depiction of the crowd size he draws.
Since his first inauguration, Trump, 80, has boasted of fantastical, record-breaking crowds at virtually all of his events, even when that is not the case.
On Saturday, when The New York Times reported his rally in ruby-red Mobile, Alabama, had completely empty seating sections, his fury was predictably ignited—if not his fact-checking skills.
“The Fake News New York Times ‘reported’ on my Great, PACKED Rally in Ohio that, ‘the place was not full. Some upper sections were almost completely empty,’” the president wrote on Truth Social on Monday, even though the Times report was based on his rally in Alabama, not Ohio.
Trump ranted that the rally was sold out and “MAXED OUT,” and that the upper sections were vacant because rallygoers “migrate down to the Main Floor.”
“Because of their dishonesty, I have cinematographers shooting the various Arenas where I speak, in that some of the Fake News likes to dishonestly report lies and untruths,” Trump went on, saying, “In actuality, my Events for very good Republican Politicians are probably more crowded than ever.”
He continued: “There are no empty seats, there haven’t been for years, and there never will be. The Rallies are ‘HOTTER’ than ever. They are all ‘happenings,’ and they never happened before, and will never be duplicated again. The Networks refuse, however, under any circumstances, to show the Crowds, but you can hear the thunderous applause, and know that it represents thousands and thousands of people. Watch tonight, for example, in the Great State of Nebraska, where I’ll be heading soon.”
He paired his tirade with a video of himself at the Ohio rally, even though The New York Times reporter Shawn McCreesh made no mention of his trip to the Buckeye State in the report.
This isn’t even the first time in a month the president has raged about his crowd sizes during his last-ditch effort to campaign for Republicans ahead of midterm elections.
During his midterm convention in Dallas, Texas, last month, Trump started to spiral over any allegation of empty seats.
“Everybody said, ‘You have a midterm convention; it’s going to be a disaster,’ Trump said. “No, but look at it, the highest rafter, no empty seats!”
Those who looked to the highest rafters would see that entire sections were almost empty.
