On Saturday, July 20, Former President Donald Trump visited Grand Rapids for his first rally since the failed assassination attempt on him in Pennsylvania just the week before. Trump spoke about his administration’s goals if elected and returned to his old tactics of criticizing the entire democratic party.
Before the rally, thousands waited patiently to get into the arena in a line that stretched over a mile long. Some had even camped outside of the venue since Thursday evening.
“I’m very excited,” said Sarah Baker, 41, of Byron Center before the rally. When asked what she is most excited about for the rally, she said, “his unity speech and his plans for what he is going to do for the country and how he brings it back to the way he originally left it.”
This historical week appears to have strengthened his campaign and his supporters expressed that during his visit to Michigan.
“God’s at work to save Trump, thankfully,” said Spencer Berg, 18, of Grand Rapids.
His friend Lucas Scherpenisse, 18, of Grand Rapids, agreed and shared that both of them had been standing in line since 8 a.m.
“It’s been a crazy week and I just want to help support Trump however I can,” Scherpenisse said.
Many of those who attended the rally sported shirts of the administration’s motto “Make America Great Again (MAGA),” mugshots of the former president or a photo of Trump pumping his fist in the air after he was attacked last week. Some of these shirts came from the various vendors that were set up outside of the arena.
Amber Johnson, 37, of Biloxi, Mississippi has been traveling along with Trump’s campaign for the past few months and selling merchandise to supporters nationwide.
“I’ve been working in politics professionally since about 2017, working on different campaigns,” said Johnson. “ … I thought I could do this for the summer and explore a little bit.”
The rally had a heightened amount of security with a strong presence from the Michigan State Police, the Grand Rapids Police Department, Kent County Sheriff’s Department, and other departments stationed in groups around the arena. The doors opened around 1 p.m., nearly four hours before Trump spoke to his Michigan supporters.
Around 3 p.m., U.S. Senator JD Vance introduced himself to the Michigan crowd by sharing a bit about his childhood in Ohio and the respect he had for the working class. This was Vance’s first rally as Trump’s running mate. The crowd cheered after the senator talked about his goals to bring back the “American Dream.”
Some of the supporters before the rally said they were aware of Vance’s past of criticizing Trump but that those decisions don’t affect who he is today.
“I was surprised but not surprised,” said Adman Salton, 39, of Linden. “That wasn’t my pick. He’s a congressman, probably should stay as a congressman. We kind of need him there for the manpower … He was a never-Trumper but people change.”
“I like him,” said Baker. “I’ve done a little research. I’ve heard stuff and read some things and it sounds like he has the conservative values and has a past of not liking Trump, but that just shows anybody can change. Now he is a huge Trump supporter.”
Trump took the stage around 5 p.m., thanked the crowd for their support, and addressed his thoughts about the shooting that killed a father and ex-fire chief Corey Comperatore.
Soon after, Trump repeated many of the same lines from his speech at the RNC about crime rates in America and his thoughts on foreign affairs. Both Vance and Trump criticized Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
“Obviously Gretchen Whitmer is a problem,” Vance said.
Later, Trump piled on.
“Well, you have a terrible governor who did a terrible job,” Trump said. “Whitmer. I would like to run against her.”
In response, Whitmer posted on X (formerly Twitter), “It’s me. Hi. I’m the “problem” it’s me. If you want to be a problem for the Trump-Vance campaign, too, donate to help us stop them.” A reference to famous singer Taylor Swift’s popular song “Anti-Hero.”
Trump would go on to criticize her MI Healthy Climate plan and her mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic. Trump’s push for “national unity” was gone during this rally, as he criticized the entire democratic party.
During the rally, Detroit-area businessman Sandy Pensler announced his decision to withdraw from the Republican Senate race in Michigan just shortly after being walked to the stage by Trump and threw his support behind former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers.
Toward the end of his speech, Trump fired up the crowd by saying his administration would restore American values, jobs and the economy if elected in November.
This was Trump’s second campaign visit to Grand Rapids this year, with the first being back in April. The former president stopped in Grand Rapids after the murder of local resident Ruby Garcia. His visit angered Garcia’s family after he falsely claimed he met with her relatives.
