Donald Trump’s campaign has postponed a planned New Hampshire rally, just weeks after it canceled the Alabama event. According to USA Today, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany confirmed the news on Friday, telling reporters who were traveling with the president that the “big storm” has caused them to delay the rally by “a week or two.” The storm in question is Tropical Storm Fay, which CBS-NY recently reported has brought some rainfall and wind gusts to New Jersey and New York.
The canceled events come after a heavily-hyped June Trump rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma failed to draw as many supporters as had been expected. The arena in which the rally was hosted can hold around 19,000 people, and though the campaign expected it to be sold-out, only around 6,200 people attended. Recently, Tulsa City-County Health Department Director Dr. Bruce Dart told the Associated Press that the rally had “more than likely contributed” to a new outbreak of COVID-19 in the city and its surrounding areas. “In the past few days, we’ve seen almost 500 new cases, and we had several large events just over two weeks ago, so I guess we just connect the dots,” Dart said.
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The White House just told reporters on Air Force One that the New Hampshire rally, scheduled for tomorrow in an airport hangar, will be delayed a week or two because of an impending storm, making this @maggieNYT @anniekarni headline v accurate. https://t.co/68lybV499l
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) July 10, 2020
Trump campaign spokesman Tim Murtaugh refutes the data, however, stating campaign staff took measures to ensure all attendees were healthy and safe. “There were literally no health precautions to speak of as thousands looted, rioted, and protested in the streets and the media reported that it did not lead to a rise in coronavirus cases,” he said in a statement. “Meanwhile, the President’s rally was 18 days ago, all attendees had their temperature checked, everyone was provided a mask, and there was plenty of hand sanitizer available for all.” Murtaugh then laid the blame elsewhere, stating, “It’s obvious that the media’s concern about large gatherings begins and ends with Trump rallies.”
As far as concerns over Tropical Storm Fay, CBS News reports that the biggest impact felt will be heavy rainfall that moves northward over Friday night along the East Coast, from Virginia to New England. It is expected to mostly miss Washington, D.C., and Baltimore. At this time, warnings have been issued in some areas, but New Hampshire did not appear to be on the list.
