Trump draws thousands at Bethpage rally

Posted

Nearly 10,000 people packed into Stage 3 at Grumman Studios in Bethpage on Wednesday night to hear Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump.

The real estate mogul began a raucous speech by telling attendees that he loved them, and how fond he is of playing golf at Bethpage State Park. Amid chants of “Build the wall!” and “Lyin’ Ted!,” Trump outlined his vision for America. He vowed to prevent American businesses from going overseas, to destroy ISIS and to secure the borders.

“We are going to start winning again with our country because we don’t win, we never, ever win anymore,” Trump said to a chorus of cheers. “We don’t win with our military, we don’t win on trade, we don’t win on health care, we don’t win at anything. We are going to start winning again.”

A day after losing the Wisconsin primary to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, Trump made a point of distinguishing himself from his adversary, and explained to the crowd why he should be the nominee. “He couldn’t draw 100 people,” Trump said of Cruz’s campaign stop in the Bronx earlier that day. “You remember during the debate when he started lecturing me on New York values, like we’re no good? And I started talking to him about the World Trade Center, the bravery, the incredible bravery of everybody, the police, the firemen, everybody.”

Before Trump took the stage, some notable Nassau County Republicans spoke to the thousands in attendance. County Executive Ed Mangano gave a rousing speech focusing on the history of Grumman and Long Island. “This is where American history was made,” he said to loud cheers, alluding to Grumman’s work with the military during World War II.

Mangano made clear his support for Trump, saying that with him in the White House, America would flourish economically. “Donald Trump will deliver that strong economy,” he said.

Many in the crowd said that Trump’s appeal is that he is not a politician, and he is not beholden to any special-interest groups or lobbyists. By self-funding his campaign, they said, he can act independently, and many said they believed he could change the political system for the better.

Page 1 / 3