UNIONDALE, N.Y.—Former President Donald Trump on Sept. 18 held his first full rally since surviving a second apparent assassination attempt over the weekend.
The rally was held in Uniondale, a city on Republican-leaning Long Island in the deep-blue state of New York. Long Island is home to several highly competitive congressional districts that could determine control of the House in the next Congress.
Ahead of the event, a large crowd had already assembled at the venue, the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, which seats around 13,000 people. Most seats were filled.
The rally was held just three days after an apparent assassination attempt was averted by the Secret Service at Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach, Florida.
The failed plot was top of mind for attendees in Uniondale.
William Diver, a 70-year-old from Farmingville, New York, called the attempted assassination “disgusting” and expressed hope that the federal government could find answers to the events that unfolded that day.
Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, of Hawaii has been charged with two federal gun crimes over the incident, with further charges expected as both federal and state authorities probe the case.
Others questioned the adequacy of the Secret Service’s protective measures. The agency has been under intense scrutiny since the assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, two months ago, and it has only increased with the Florida incident.
“It was terrible. It was horrible,” attendee Ariel Kohan said when asked about the recent attempt on Trump’s life.
“The Secret Service has to step up and do a much better job. But you know, thank God for that one Secret Service agent that saw the barrel of the gun sticking out of the shrub,” she said, referring to the agent who noticed a rifle sticking through the fence at the golf course and immediately began to open fire.
Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe defended the agency’s measures at the golf course, calling them “effective.”
In the opening of his speech, Trump praised the agent who first noticed the suspected would-be assassin, as well as the woman whose photos of the fleeing suspect’s vehicle helped police quickly apprehend him.
“These encounters with death … have only hardened my resolve to use my time on earth to make America great again,” Trump said.
“God has now spared my life … not once, but twice,” he said.
In a post on Truth Social ahead of the rally, Trump said, “We have a real chance of winning [New York] for the first time in many decades.”
New York last voted for a Republican presidential candidate in 1984.
“What do you have to lose?” Trump said at the rally.
Recent polling shows that Harris has between an 11 and 17 percent edge in the state—though this falls well short of President Joe Biden’s 2020 victory, when he won by around 23 points.
But Republicans have seen a much stronger performance on Republican-leaning Long Island, where the party controls three of the island’s four House seats—seats that could be crucial in ensuring a Republican-led House for Trump should he regain the White House.
Earlier the same day, fears arose regarding a reported bomb threat near the area. Police said in a statement that the threat was unfounded and that an individual was in custody for the claim.
Also earlier that the day, the 1.3 million member Teamsters Union announced that it wouldn’t make an endorsement for president, for the first time since 1966.
Trump marketed the decision as a win for Republicans, calling it “a big thing” that the powerful union wasn’t endorsing Democrats.
Make 9/11 Memorial a National Monument
Trump said that he would designate Ground Zero, the site of the 9/11 attack in Manhattan, as a national monument if reelected.
“As president, I will officially make the Ground Zero site at the World Trade Center a national monument … so that hallowed ground and the memory of all who perished there will be preserved for all time,” he said at the rally.
Last week, Trump attended a memorial service at the site, marking the 23rd anniversary of the attack. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were also in attendance.
It’s unclear whether federal law currently would allow the president to unilaterally declare Ground Zero a national monument without the consent of Congress, as the site is not federal land.
Trump Promises to Restore SALT
The former president spent most of the rally discussing crime, drugs, immigration, and taxes.
He specifically focused on the state and local tax (SALT) deduction, a federal deduction that allows taxpayers to deduct their state and local taxes from their federal tax bill. It’s popular in high-tax states like New York and New Jersey.
Trump told the crowd that he would restore the full SALT deduction if reelected.
Under Trump’s 2017 tax legislation, SALT deductions were capped at $10,000 per filer, and some Republicans have pushed for getting rid of the deduction altogether. New York Republicans are generally supportive of uncapping it.
“I will cut taxes for families, small businesses, and workers, including restoring the SALT deduction,” Trump said.
‘Trump Reciprocal Trade Act’
At the rally, Trump also announced legislation he would pursue if reelected, called the Trump Reciprocal Trade Act.
The proposal wraps in many of Trump’s criticisms of current U.S. trade policy. He said the bill would have the United States set its tariffs at the same rate as those imposed by foreign countries on U.S. imports.
“You charge us, we charge you,” Trump said, putting special emphasis on how the legislation would affect Chinese imports.
The proposed legislation would also extend to U.S. allies.
“Some of the worst trading countries are allies,” Trump said. “They’re friends of ours, and they take advantage of us horribly.”
While hidin bidin and kammle toe stay off the radar.
“What do you have to lose?” Trump said at the rally.
Years of Leftist incompetence and abuse.