Showstopper: Donald Trump circles Alabama stadium in his Boeing 757 before landing for massive rally
He has grand showmanship but a very clear message. Roaring overhead in his personal Boeing 757, Donald Trump circled the Alabama stadium packed with fans waiting for an evening campaign pep rally — not once but twice on Friday night.
The Republican front-runner had arrived.
Mr. Trump was there to host the biggest event so far in the 2016 presidential season. An estimated 30,000 people showed up to hear him speak at a football stadium in Mobile, where the theme was “Make America great again,” and Old Glory was the prevailing visual cue.
Loudspeakers blared with the appropriate southern anthem “Sweet Home Alabama.” Wearing his now signature red baseball cap, khaki pants and tailored blazer but no tie, Mr. Trump spoke for an hour, covering topics of acute interest to his audience.
Immigration, the economy, foreign entanglements, the 14th Amendment and his GOP rivals — particularly former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush — all came under discussion. Sen. Jeff Sessions arrived to give a brief, cordial speech, and the crowd was as enthusiastic as a hometown football audience. The seemingly indefatigable Mr. Trump reminded them that he was a player on a global scale.
“I know the game better than anyone,” he said.
“Here’s a simple question: Who would you rather have negotiating with China, Japan, Mexico, any of them? Trump or Bush?” the candidate asked the crowd.
And then what do you think happened?
They responded with chants of “Trump, Trump, Trump.”
Clearly the crowd was in search of a leader. A leader who would stand up to other powers, who talked strength and skill, and who used the stadium rally to unveil his immigration policy - how he would deal with outsiders infiltrating into his nation - and their nation; the other, the enemy; the crowd chanting, "Trump, Trump, Trump."
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| Sen. Sessions, Trump to the right image from here, the site reporting - |
Taking the microphone, Sessions said: “The American people, these people, want somebody in the presidency who stands up for them, defends their interests and the laws and traditions of this country.”
UPDATE: Trump was not the only GOP presidential candidate attaining favorable outcomes. Rand Paul was successful in convincing enough Kentucky Republican Party officials to go with a caucus. See, e.g., reporting here, here, here and here. The caucus proposal was important to Sen. Paul, because with Kentucky law not allowing a candidate two ballot positions [that would be retention in the Senate and a contestant for the presidency], Sen. Pual needed a presidential caucus to keep a ballot spot his to retain his seat. Sen. McConnell was Sen. Paul's ally in the effort.