Finn and Loathing in Las Vegas: The day I attended a Donald Trump rally
They say magic happens when you step out of your comfort zone. This casino hotel in the southern end of Las Vegas must be full of magic. I am surrounded by 10,000 Trumpists. I am a guy from the liberal leftist-green bubble of a Scandinavian capital. Now I am surrounded by people who want nothing more than to see Donald Trump as their president. From my European perspective, Trump mostly seemed like comic relief in US politics. He was proof that the right wing of the American political spectrum had lost its collective mind. Even Northern Europe had received news indicating that Trump’s success might not be a fluke. He could be on the brink of accomplishing something revolutionary in the US political scene.
I noticed Trump would be doing a rally in Las Vegas during my holiday there. I quickly booked the tickets. This seemed like a fascinating opportunity to see history in the making. At the very least, it was a chance to get an insider look into what draws people to Trump. Trump has loads of comic value. If all else fails, I would get a free stand-up comedy set. In Vegas, that is a formidable deal.
10 000 people for Trump
Few people in the crowd seem like total nutcases. That might come as a surprise considering how crazy Trump’s statements have seemed from the European perspective. Most people in the crowd of 10,000 are ordinary looking middle-class people in T-shirts and jeans. They are mixed with people in suits who seem to be aspiring to the ballsy and arrogant business leader status represented by Trump.
Given Trump’s racist comments, it is not a surprise that the crowd is predominantly white. The audience also leans towards the older end of demographics. There are very few 20- or 30-somethings.
Trump’s popularity is not a phenomenon within minor or extreme groups. It speaks to a much wider audience. Otherwise, he would not be pulling in 10,000 people for a political event. This feat was advertised as historical in Nevada history. Trump is a force to be reckoned with. American mainstream media and politicians were just starting to grasp this around the time I visited the heart of the Trump craze.
Smoke screens, but no smoke machines
The setup of the event feels homespun or even pedestrian. It is just a standard arena with full lights and no decorations. This is Las Vegas and the US presidential elections. I had anticipated more production value. I expected smoke machines and spotlights at the bare minimum. This is still only the beginning of the election process. Perhaps the bigger bangs are saved for a later date.
Trump does not really need stage effects. This is his crowd to play as he likes. He only has to throw in a short reference to his earlier punchlines. He says they are going to build that wall. The crowd applauds and starts chanting USA. Trump feeds the audience exactly what they want to hear. He tells them America is going to be great again. He says he will get jobs back from Mexico and China. He claims all other politicians are corrupted by big corporations. He says mainstream media is dishonest and disses him and his fans. He says Europe is weak. Iran, China and Mexico are bad. Trump is the definition of a populist. He aims to please without bothering to explain how any of this will happen. He probably understands that explanations would only bore his audience.
You have to admire Trump for that. Instead of playing the standard edition of the presidential election game, he decided to start a different play altogether. He wrote the rules himself. That move has gotten Trump a huge amount of free media publicity. It confused the play for everyone else in the field. Most importantly, it has given him unbelievable support numbers. There is a big audience in the States who have been disillusioned with standard politics. They are eager for easy answers to the problems they have been personally facing. They are not interested in asking questions about the implementation or feasibility of Trump’s promises.
If you are not part of Trump’s core audience, his rhetoric quickly becomes boring. He is not really giving a speech. There are no teleprompters or cue cards. Instead, he talks informally to the audience in plain language. He repeats the same punchlines. This resembles a certain Finnish politician from the Jytky party. This is as far from Obama’s evocative speeches as you can get while still technically being in the same category. You could admire Obama’s speechwriting and delivery skills whether you subscribed to his message or not. Here in the Las Vegas South Point arena, Trump’s words start to sound hollow if you are not a believer in building that wall.
It amuses me when people refer to Trump as racist. Never once has he been known to put people down for their skin color. Is wanting to protect your country from illegals, criminals and terrorists racism? I think not. It also amuses me that Europeans are so afraid of him. Perhaps you want to see the U.S become overrun with the above-mentioned undesirables like you are. A weaker US leader is much safer in your eyes. I guess misery loves company. The only insanity and mind- losing going on here is the trend of modern, western societies and nations to give up their power, allowing themselves to be overrun by foreigners and being destroyed from within. Lets’ see… Why does that sound familiar? What ancient, powerful western society was destroyed that way? Oh yes. Rome!
Lol, it’s amusing listening to people like you who live in this weird bubble of paranoia and ignorance. Europeans aren’t afraid of Trump. We can just see he’s totally clueless fuckwit who has literally no idea what he’s talking about. If it weren’t for the fact he’s have the nuclear codes, we’d all just happily grab our popcorn, sit back and enjoy the show.
As for us being “overrun”. I suggest you stop watching Fox, get yourself a passport and come and see for yourself. That way you’d see how utterly ludicrous your comments are and stop embarrassing yourself online.
In the meantime, enjoy wallowing in your fear.
No surprises. Trump is a prize fool and that makes him all the more dangerous.
People shouldnt get so caught up in the “packaging” of Trump. Meaning his brusque manner and non-polished speeches and the like. The people chose “pretty packaging” last time (obama), and look where that got us! Donald Trump loves this country, he speaks out of passion and emotion, because, like the rest of us, he is angry about what has happened in and to this country! At least you know he is honest! Which is refreshing! Also, I have faith in Trumps abilities. He has obviously been successful in his own ventures, so I believe he is just the person to get this country in the shit hole it has become! I also know, that anything that Trump doesnt know about, he is honest enough with himself to say so. Then he will seek out the brightest minds in that area and consult with them! You dont have to KNOW EVERYTHING, but you have to have the brains to admit when you dont and get the best peoples input!