The crowd at Windham High School to hear former President Donald Trump. ANI FREEDMAN photo
By ANI FREEDMAN, InDepthNH.org
WINDHAM – Former President Donald Trump rallied his New Hampshire base Tuesday afternoon with denouncements of the Biden administration and the four cases he is currently facing a week after the Department of Justice announced he would be indicted on charges involving the 2020 election and the Jan. 6 uprising at the Capitol.
Hundreds packed a hot gymnasium at Windham High School after waiting hours in the rain, passionately exhibiting their continued support for the former president, only invigorated by the indictments he is up against.
Trump’s speech contained familiar tunes of closing the border and condemning immigration. Trump claimed the immigrants crossing in from Mexico and other South American countries were coming from places like “mental institutions.”
“Our country is being invaded,” Trump said.
The crowd was packed with bright red MAGA hats and supporters proudly waving signs that read “Veterans for Trump.” Those signs became fans as the heat in the gym became almost unbearable.
Underscoring his entire speech was his continued promise to support veterans, as he claimed he would reallocate funds in Congress to build the first Veterans Affairs hospital in New Hampshire. “I will make stopping veteran suicides a top priority,” he said.
Woven into his speech were also attacks on the indictments looming over his campaign, frequent criticisms of Joe Biden, critical race theory and transgender rhetoric (from what he called the “radical left”), along with his continued denial of his 2020 election loss. Trump spoke confidently that he would win the 2024 presidency, emphasizing his lead in recent polls and calling Joe Biden “crooked” and a “compromised candidate.” He accused Biden’s administration of indicting him as a campaign tactic, calling the charges “bogus made-up accusations.”
“Joe Biden puts bureaucrats first. I put veterans first, and I put America first,” Trump said.
Supporters at the rally emphasized continued loyalty to former president Trump. Joe and Julie Fortier, owners of the Poorboys Diner in Londonderry, have been Trump supporters since he announced his campaign in 2015. They, along with many other of the people at the event, denounced the indictments against Trump. “They don’t have a case,” Julie Fortier said.
Among a crowd of loyal supporters, college students and registered independents Ryan Casey and Alex Chiavaras remained critical of Trump, attending the event out of curiosity. After waiting in line for three hours that morning, Casey felt that Trump had cultivated a religion out of his campaign. “I think it’s a cult,” Casey said.
Despite some individuals’ uncertainty about Trump, the rest of the packed room was loud with excited cheers of their candidate, and cries of anger at the mention of Biden and Trump’s prosecutors throughout the hour in which he spoke. “One more indictment and I think this election is over,” Trump said. Booming cheers followed.
Trump is currently the center of four different investigations, including the new federal charges. The first case is headed by the Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg, who in April brought forth 34 felony charges regarding campaign payments suspected to have covered up a potential sex scandal leading up to the 2016 election.
A federal grand jury in Florida then filed charges regarding classified documents found on Trump’s Mar-a-Lago property, in which he faces 40 criminal counts. In Georgia, Trump is currently the center of an election inquiry headed by district attorney Fani T. Willis involving possible efforts to reverse his election loss.
Trump’s first campaign rally since the indictments revealed an unabashed confidence that he will emerge victorious in November 2024, from both the man himself and his supporters.