GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump held a rally at New York’s Madison Square Garden on Sunday where vulgar and racist remarks were made by his allies at the podium. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and current Democratic Vice-Presidential candidate Tim Walz have compared the rally to the 1939 Nazi rally held at the famous venue in midtown Manhattan.
On February 20, 1939, a Nazi rally took place at MSG, organized by the pro-Hitler group German American Bund, which “promoted Nazi propaganda in the United States, combining Nazi imagery with American patriotic imagery.” More than 20,000 people attended the rally.
As seen in the video below, Retired U.S. Navy pilot Ken Harbaugh, host of the political podcast The Ken Harbaugh Show and producer of the film Against All Enemies, reported from Madison Square Garden yesterday where he said there was a “massive crowd” and “an air of menace.”
@thekenharbaughshow At Trump’s NYC rally. This venue was chosen for a reason. Do yourself a favor and lookup ‘Madison Square Garden 1939.’ #FYP #madisonsquaregarden #meidastouchnetwork ♬ original sound – The Ken Harbaugh Show
He said, “This is not a joyful crowd by and large” and noted there was “a huge sea of Pardon Trump signs.”
Harbaugh concluded: “This is hedge. This is not a campaign or a candidate that is confident about winning. This is a campaign and a candidate that is appealing to the most extreme elements of his base. So that in the event of a loss, they can take their fight to the streets.”
♬ original sound – The Ken Harbaugh Show
He added, “This is a continuation of that appeal to the Proud Boys to ‘stand back’ and stand by, and there’s no doubt that this venue was chosen for a reason.” He suggests that Americans “Google Madison Square Garden 1939.”
Some have called out Trump for further signaling his allegiance to the Proud Boys with his choice of colors, while others have defended the choice as aligned with the military. As with much messaging, it will signal different things to different audiences.
MAGA deplorables are flooding the Twitterverse with their explanations of why Trump was wearing Proud Boys yellow and black gang colors this weekend.
“He was at a Steelers game”… last week?
“He was honoring the Army”… whose soldiers he calls ‘suckers’ and ‘losers’?
Please.
— Bill Auclair (@bill_auclair) October 28, 2024
Bill Auclair, responsible for the X post above, also comments on the defense by Trump’s supporters.
MAGA deplorables are flooding the Twitterverse with their explanations of why Trump was wearing Proud Boys yellow and black gang colors this weekend.
“He was at a Steelers game”… last week?
“He was honoring the Army”… whose soldiers he calls ‘suckers’ and ‘losers’?
Please.
— Bill Auclair (@bill_auclair) October 28, 2024
One of the MSG rally speakers, Sid Rosenberg of the Sid and Friends talk radio program, delivered a tongue-in-cheek acknowledgement that the rally was a “Nazi rally” — or was widely characterized as one. His joke didn’t quite land with the audience, but his support for Israel was proffered as a buffer against charges that the evening featured anti-Semitism. Rosenberg also characterized his speech as a “gig” he decided to take — a hired performance. See below.
The speakers believed it was a Nazi Rally. The Proud Boys thought it was a Nazi Rally. The Nazis know it was a Nazi Rally. It was a Nazi Rally. pic.twitter.com/BHpwiNyDyu
— Sgt Joker (@TheSGTJoker) October 28, 2024