'Liberal tears': Donald Trump Jr. energizes GOP faithful in Arizona
Donald Trump Jr. energized and entertained Republicans on Oct. 23 in battleground Arizona, as the frenzy over the upcoming Nov. 5 election reaches a fever pitch.
With early voting well underway, and less than two weeks before Election Day, the former president’s son delivered Republicans’ 2024 closing arguments with the sarcastic flair that has made him beloved among Trump’s base.
“The Biden-Harris administration refuses to actually cater to Americans,” he told a crowd of several hundred people at Pecan Lake Entertainment in Queen Creek. “Like, god forbid, right?”
Trump Jr.’s stops in Arizona were part of a whirlwind of visits from presidential campaign surrogates this week, as both parties make one last pitch to undecided voters and remind supporters to cast their ballots.
In Arizona, that means back-to-back appearances by Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, the GOP’s vice presidential nominee; former President Bill Clinton, the first Democrat since President Harry Truman to turn Arizona blue when he won here in 1996; former President Donald Trump; President Joe Biden; and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democrats’ vice presidential nominee.
The packed campaign trail calendar is a sign of how competitive the presidential race is in Arizona. Trump has a slight lead in most public polls, but the race is still considered too close to safely predict.
Speaking in Queen Creek, Trump Jr. pinned the state of the economy on Harris, at a time when Americans express disapproval towards their bottom line, and he sketched a picture of a political system that he said puts the needs of illegal immigrants or military aid over its own citizens.
“I promise you this, guys: Kamala Harris is not gonna be a moderate,” Trump Jr. said. “She is a radical, San Francisco liberal.”
When reached for comment, James Martin, spokesperson for the Arizona Democratic coordinated campaign, countered with one of the Democrats’ key campaign trail arguments: that Trump can’t be trusted with power.“Those who know Donald Trump best are sounding the alarm about the risk he poses to the safety, security, and future of our country and democracy — which is why a historic number of Arizona Republicans and Independents are putting country over party and backing Vice President Harris,” Martin wrote.“Trump wants unchecked power, and it’s up to Arizona voters to decide whether they’re going to let him take it.”
Younger Trump’s personality on display in Valley stops
Though he is politically in the shadow of his father, the former president’s son has developed a distinctive voice of his own. Popular among the GOP’s base, Trump Jr. has been accumulating political power and skillfully emulates his father’s distinctive style of public speaking.
He elicited raucous cheers at his campaign stop in Queen Creek, peppering references to recent news cycles and jokes that delighted the crowd of Trump supporters.
“We can become unburdened by what has been,” he said, referencing a viral remark by Harris.
He amused the crowd by riffing on the blowback he faced during the COVID-19 pandemic when he promoted contrarian theories about the origins of the virus.
“I don’t know, guys, like, I don’t think you have to be a virologist," he said. "I think you have to just not be a moron.”
Trump Jr.’s remarks also touched on his father’s political fights. He name-dropped Mitch McConnell, the highest-ranking Republican in the U.S. Senate who has a rocky relationship with Trump. He mocked McConnell, R-Ky., over his support for sending military aid to Ukraine as it fends off an invasion from Russia.
“Just with this group alone, I’ve spoken to more real Republicans around the country than Mitch McConnell has,” he said.
Trump Jr. frequently returned to the theme of corruption in D.C. and accused the media of “creating hoax after hoax” against his father.
“Whatever disdain we all have for the media, everyone knows it’s not enough,” Trump Jr. said.
He dismissed a story that appeared in The Atlantic the day before, citing two anonymous earwitnesses who reported that Trump said, “I need the kind of generals that Hitler had.”
“They have no moral compass. They have no shame. And there’s nothing they won’t do to maintain power,” Trump Jr. said.
He was scheduled to visit Arizona earlier in October, in partnership with the conservative youth organization Turning Point Action. But he canceled his visit as Hurricane Milton charted a course towards his home in Florida.
Republican Senate candidate Kari Lake, U.S. Reps. Andy Biggs and Eli Crane, and state Sen. Jake Hoffman also spoke at the event in Queen Creek.
Lake’s remarks spanned familiar themes of “sending people back to their homelands” and a call to “take this country back.” She praised Trump Jr. as an “authentic” person who “tells us exactly what he’s thinking.”
Hoffman, R-Queen Creek, who was recently indicted over his role in Arizona’s “fake elector” scheme in 2020, spoke of a “revival” sweeping the nation in support of Trump and encouraged people to turn in their ballots.
And, in what has become a campaign trail talking point for the freshman member of Congress, Crane insinuated that, contrary to available evidence and official narratives, the attempt on Trump’s life in July was part of a politically motivated campaign that also includes the lawsuits against the former president.
Trump Jr. left the stage declaring “We have had enough of the nonsense” and predicting “liberal tears” on Election Day.