It Used to be Just Trump but Now the Democrats are Obsessed With Crowd Size

[Social Media]

 

Trump has made crowd size a central talking point in his political narrative. Now, the Democrats, particularly through the candidacy of Kamala Harris, are embracing this tactic, turning the spotlight back on Trump in a game he has long dominated.

 

The rise of Kamala Harris as a presidential candidate has attracted significant attention, not just for her policies or speeches, but for the throngs of supporters she has managed to gather at her campaign rallies. Tim Walz, during a Friday night rally with Vice President Harris, couldn't resist taking a page out of Trump's playbook. He openly bragged about the size of the crowds they had been drawing, signaling a shift in how Democrats are approaching the topic of crowd size.

 

In Philadelphia, the new Democratic ticket managed to pack a 10,000-person arena. A similar crowd gathered in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Walz proudly declared that the largest crowd of the campaign had shown up in Detroit, Michigan. As Harris beamed at an audience in suburban Phoenix, which Democrats claimed exceeded 15,000 people, she delivered a punchline with a wide grin, “It’s not as if anybody cares about crowd sizes or anything,” Walz quipped.

 

For years, Trump has been the one boasting about the massive crowds at his rallies. He has often used these numbers as a sign of his widespread support and the loyalty of his base. Now, with enthusiasm for the Democratic ticket surging, the tables are turning. Democrats are keen to play the crowd game, and they’ve spent the week needling Trump on a topic he famously obsesses over.

 

In response, Trump has pushed back with his own crowd tallies, though they are often inflated. At a news conference this week, Trump claimed, “I’ve spoken to the biggest crowds. Nobody’s spoken to crowds bigger than me.” He even boasted, albeit implausibly, that his speech on January 6, 2021, just before the U.S. Capitol was stormed by a pro-Trump mob, drew more people than Martin Luther King Jr.’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech.

 

Trump didn’t stop there. During a rally in Bozeman, Montana, on the same day Walz made his remarks, Trump mocked the recent attention on Harris. “They said, ‘Oh, she had a big crowd, oh what a crowd’ — the press is talking about the crowd,” he sneered. Trump pointed to his own rallies, highlighting events in New Jersey and Pickens, South Carolina, where he claimed attendance numbers far higher than local officials estimated. “We have so many people,” Trump said, reinforcing his narrative.

 

A Trump campaign spokeswoman, Karoline Leavitt, dismissed the Democrats’ newfound interest in large audiences. “Isn’t it funny how the Democrats and Fake News want to talk about crowd sizes now after they have ignored and downplayed the unprecedented and massive crowds that President Trump has been pulling for eight years?” she said. Leavitt also suggested that Harris’s use of celebrity performances at some rallies amounted to bribery, further fueling the rivalry over crowd size.

 

Meanwhile, the Harris campaign is not shying away from the challenge. Sarafina Chitika, a Harris campaign spokesperson, remarked that Trump has been “rage-Truthing about our grassroots enthusiasm and melting down publicly, both online and in front of cameras” while Harris and Walz have been actively engaging with voters in battleground states. “Donald is welcome to keep doing his thing — our campaign will be putting in the work it will take to win this election,” Chitika added.

 

Trump’s obsession with crowd size is not new. His massive rallies in 2016 were early indicators of the loyal base that would propel him to the White House. They also served as a point of contrast with Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, who often struggled to draw similar numbers. Trump began his presidency with the false claim that over 1 million people attended his inauguration, a statement his then-press secretary Sean Spicer famously defended, incorrectly asserting that Trump’s inauguration drew “the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration — period — both in person and around the globe.”

 

In the 2020 and 2024 elections, Trump continued to use crowd size as a measure of his popularity. He mocked Joe Biden for holding smaller events, and his campaign delighted in sharing pictures of empty seats at Democratic gatherings. At his rallies, Trump often accused the media of ignoring his crowd sizes and demanded that the cameras pan around to capture the full extent of his audience. His supporters sometimes used the scale of Trump’s rallies to support their false claims that he had actually won the 2020 election.

 

Even Biden, who is typically less concerned with such metrics, found himself pointing to crowd size during the 2020 campaign. Facing pressure to drop out after a poor debate performance, Biden remarked, “How many people draw crowds like I did today?” when speaking to ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos. Stephanopoulos, however, cautioned him against playing the crowd game, noting, “Donald Trump can draw big crowds.”

 

With Biden out of the race and Harris gaining momentum, Democrats are now leaning into the crowd size narrative, taking jabs at Trump and reveling in comparisons to the enthusiasm once generated by Barack Obama. On social media, Harris’s campaign eagerly compared their large rally in Glendale, Arizona, to a recent Trump event at a smaller venue in Phoenix. They also poked fun at Trump’s rally in Bozeman, sharing a video clip showing empty seats at Trump’s event, even though it was still early, and many people were yet to arrive.

 

The Trump campaign was quick to respond. Leavitt pointed out that some seating at Harris’s Arizona rally was covered with black drapes, suggesting that the Democrats were not as successful as they claimed. In interviews, Trump supporters in Bozeman brushed off Harris’s impressive crowd sizes. Warren Armstrong, a 73-year-old Trump supporter, blamed “the fake news” for what he perceived as an exaggeration of Harris’s crowds, saying, “They make things look great.”

 

Onstage, Trump continued to vent at the media, accusing them of ignoring the size of his New Jersey crowd, even though many outlets did cover it. “They don’t talk about it because they’re fake,” Trump said, maintaining his stance that the media is biased against him.

 

In Arizona, the atmosphere at Harris’s rally was electric. Julie Jonuska, a 63-year-old yoga therapist from Scottsdale, remarked on the excitement generated by Harris’s campaign. Wearing a button of Harris’s face that read “say it to my face,” a reference to Harris’s daring challenge to Trump during a rally in Atlanta, Jonuska expressed her belief that Harris could reach an audience that Biden could not. “Now Trump’s the old man,” she said, gesturing around the Desert Diamond Arena where thousands of supporters still lingered. “The crowd is your everyday normal people. It’s about the people, and not about one person, like Trump is the party of Trump.”

 

As the battle for crowd supremacy continues, it’s clear that both sides see this as more than just a numbers game. For Trump, crowd size has always been a key indicator of his political strength, a way to demonstrate his dominance and the loyalty of his base. For the Democrats, especially with Harris now leading the charge, it’s an opportunity to show that they can match, if not surpass, the enthusiasm that Trump has long boasted about. Whether or not crowd size will ultimately determine the outcome of the election remains to be seen, but for now, it’s a contest that neither side seems willing to back down from.

 

Credit: WSJ  2024-08-12

 

 

Get our Daily Newsletter - Click HERE to subscribe

 

Cigna offers a variety of health insurance plans designed to meet the minimum requirement for medical treatment coverage, with benefits reaching up to THB 3 million. These plans are tailored to provide comprehensive healthcare solutions for expatriates, ensuring peace of mind and access to quality medical services. To explore the full range of Cigna's expat health insurance options and find a plan that suits your needs, click here for more information.

[Tug]

I don’t know,I think they like yanking trumps chain I know I like to see him blubber and cry about it.its also encouraging to see packed to the rafters high energy dem voters telling trump to choke on his bile and racism and affirm the decency in our country.+ they are getting the young folks fired up to vote!!

[mokwit]

20 minutes ago, Tug said:

I don’t know,I think they like yanking trumps chain I know I like to see him blubber and cry about it.its also encouraging to see packed to the rafters high energy dem voters telling trump to choke on his bile and racism and affirm the decency in our country.+ they are getting the young folks fired up to vote!!

I thought they got them to attend with a free rock concert?

[Chomper Higgot]

Masterful trolling of the low energy weird guy.

 

The old man was obsessed with crowd size since his inauguration, telling the obvious weird lie that his crowd was larger than that of Obama.

 

He’s hair triggered on crowd size, an easy target for Harris to troll him on.

 

A big thank you to whoever thought it a good idea to put him in the same stadium where Harris had drawn a packed to the rafters crowd, the old man himself spotted the house was half empty for his appearance.

 

Since then he’s done one campaign rally, in Montana of all places, a State where his victory is assured anyway.

 

He needs to be out and about in the swing states, but Harris is already there setting bench mark crowd sizes that the weird guy can’t reach.

 

It’s a smart play.

 

More please.

 

 

 

[bendejo]

The Dem ticket is flaunting crowd size because they know it upsets DT.  Poor guy, but he loves complaining even more than he loves going to court, so it's a win-win in the end. 

 

 

[Celsius]

criminals

 

https://www.businessinsider.com/secret-service-busted-salon-use-bathroom-owner-2024-8

[KhunLA]

3 hours ago, mokwit said:

I thought they got them to attend with a free rock concert?

And when the bands done playing, the people start leaving, without staying to hear anything she says ... 

 

Better news sources = better information

 

Wisconsin performer - Don Iver (not harris)

Atlanta performer - Megan Three Stallion (not harris)

 

I remember a free concert, headliner, James Taylor (1980).   Oh yea, John Anderson showed up for about 2 minutes before the show.   

 

I remember his all inspiring talk, and went something like this ... "I'll be short, as you didn't come here to see me, don't forget to vote ... and now, James Taylor" 

 

James Taylor had a few nice words, but importantly, emphasized the need for more than a 2 party system ... then put on an excellent free show.

Edited August 12 by KhunLA

[frank83628]

probably because they never had crowds of any description before, until invention of AI !

[bendejo]

One Chinese New Year (2013) the PM of Malaysia (the one who was severely busted) hired Psy (the Korean guy with the 'horse dance') to play a campaign rally for a miiliion US$.  After the performance his nibs comes onstage and says "let's hear it for Psy!" and the crowd goes wild.  Then "let's hear it for [name of political party withheld] !"  and the crowd booed him off stage.

 

28 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

Wisconsin headliner - Don Iver (not harris)

Atlanta headliner - Megan Three Stallion (not harris)

 

If they got those bookings mixed up, and Megan played the Wisconsin gig, the cows might get so upset they'll lose their ability to produce milk, and Bon Iver bores them so bad in Atlanta everyone sleeps clear through election day.

What a country!

 

Edited August 12 by bendejo

[Chomper Higgot]

13 minutes ago, frank83628 said:

probably because they never had crowds of any description before, until invention of AI !

I see the Trump lie has been passed down on the daily hym sheet and has now arrived on the forum.

[Dcheech]

WSJ - Wall Street Journal. Owned by Murdoch. It used to be a right wing, old school moderate Republican business paper. Looks like they got the notice; mound of sound is in trouble, need to step up & start pumping. Good to see they're well on their way to full propaganda outlet like FOX & RT.

 

Edited August 12 by Dcheech

[bendejo]

4 minutes ago, Dcheech said:

WSJ - Wall Street Journal. Owned by Murdoch. It used to be a right wing, old school moderate Republican business paper. Looks like they got the notice; mound of sound is in trouble, need to step up & start pumping. Good to see they're well on their way to full propaganda outlet like FOX & RT.

 

Fox, NY Post, and WSJ, same slop poured out of the same blender.  Difference is WSJ is supposed to be for those with a higher than 2-digit IQ, the same slant but with multi-syllable words.

 

[herfiehandbag]

If crowd sizes are to become a subject of controversy in this campaign, then perhaps a suitable well known individual should be appointed as a "size ombudsman" to adjudicate?

 

May I suggest Miss Stormy Daniels for the role - she has shown some experience and wisdom  in ruling on the matter of size!

Edited August 12 by herfiehandbag

[placeholder]

1 hour ago, Chomper Higgot said:

I see the Trump lie has been passed down on the daily hym sheet and has now arrived on the forum.

Trump Falsely Claims That the Crowds Seen at Harris Rallies Are Fake
The former president, in a series of social media posts, said that Vice President Kamala Harris had used A.I. technology to create images of fake crowds at her events.

Former President Donald J. Trump has taken his new obsession with the large crowds that Vice President Kamala Harris is drawing at her rallies to new heights, falsely declaring in a series of social media posts on Sunday that she had used artificial intelligence to create images and videos of fake crowds.

The crowds at Ms. Harris’s events, including one in Detroit outside an airplane hangar, were witnessed by thousands of people and news outlets, including The New York Times, and the number of attendees claimed by her campaign is in line with what was visible on the ground. 

https://archive.ph/GFgNg

 

And the Trump weirdness continues. I suspect the increasingly bizarre Trump actually believes this. Not surprising, really. He believes what he needs to believe to sustain his fragile ego.

[placeholder]

Just now, placeholder said:

Trump Falsely Claims That the Crowds Seen at Harris Rallies Are Fake
The former president, in a series of social media posts, said that Vice President Kamala Harris had used A.I. technology to create images of fake crowds at her events.

Former President Donald J. Trump has taken his new obsession with the large crowds that Vice President Kamala Harris is drawing at her rallies to new heights, falsely declaring in a series of social media posts on Sunday that she had used artificial intelligence to create images and videos of fake crowds.

The crowds at Ms. Harris’s events, including one in Detroit outside an airplane hangar, were witnessed by thousands of people and news outlets, including The New York Times, and the number of attendees claimed by her campaign is in line with what was visible on the ground. 

https://archive.ph/GFgNg

 

And the Trump weirdness continues. I suspect the increasingly bizarre Trump actually believes this. Not surprising, really. He believes what he needs to believe to sustain his fragile ego.

Great article here about how Trump relies on dubious numbers rather than face reality.

 

Trump, by the Numbers

From the first time I went on an exploratory political trip with Trump in 1999, he has measured his worth in numbers... 

He pronounced himself better than other candidates because of numbers: the number of men who desired his then-girlfriend, Melania Knauss; the number of zoning changes he had maneuvered to get; the number of stories he stacked on his building near the U.N.; the number of times he was mentioned in a Palm Beach newspaper.

By his mode of valuation, if his numbers aren’t better than his rivals’, he’s worthless

https://dnyuz.com/2024/08/10/trump-by-the-numbers/

[KhunLA]

One dominant, common quality in harris introductions to speak ...

... she's a woman &

... she's black  

... will fight for 'her' people 

13% of population, and the other 87% ??? ... 

 

Just think if they introduced Trump as ...

... a man

... and white 

 

And they call him the sexist and racist 😎

[Tug]

2 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

One dominant, common quality in harris introductions to speak ...

... she's a woman &

... she's black  

... will fight for 'her' people 

13% of population, and the other 87% ??? ... 

 

Just think if they introduced Trump as ...

... a man

... and white 

 

And they call him the sexist and racist 😎

Love the sound of desperation 

[frank83628]

a guy posted this claiming it was a Trump rally...it was Kamalas....

[Chomper Higgot]

8 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

One dominant, common quality in harris introductions to speak ...

... she's a woman &

... she's black  

... will fight for 'her' people 

13% of population, and the other 87% ??? ... 

 

Just think if they introduced Trump as ...

... a man

... and white 

 

And they call him the sexist and racist 😎

She’s an American.

 

That’s the only thing that matters.

[placeholder]

1 hour ago, frank83628 said:

a guy posted this claiming it was a Trump rally...it was Kamalas....

That may be true. But you'll have to come up with a credible source to establish that as a fact. So try again with an actual link to a credible source

 

From the landing page of the World News Forum:

Any alleged factual claims must be supported by a valid link to an approved credible source.

https://aseannow.com/forum/158-world-news/

[earlinclaifornia]

2 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

I see the Trump lie has been passed down on the daily hym sheet and has now arrived on the forum.

Plenty MAGA  schooling Trump to fire the clowns 

Inspires more of them to deal in reality

[Emdog]

1 hour ago, KhunLA said:

One dominant, common quality in harris introductions to speak ...

... she's a woman &

... she's black  

... will fight for 'her' people 

13% of population, and the other 87% ??? ... 

 

Just think if they introduced Trump as ...

... a man

... and white 

 

And they call him the sexist and racist 😎

You need to take a basic class in stats and reasoning

51% of US population is female... somehow you added 3 categories and came up with 13%. You get an 'F'.

Along with absurd belief that Americans only vote along "identity" lines: I am not black (white); I am not female (male); have no inkling of what you mean by "her' people ... those who believe in democratic ideals, equality under law, equal opportunity, etc? Then I guess I'm one of 'her' people then. I am also over 70

And yet somehow I will vote for her and even donate some cash

It's a strange old world....

[frank83628]

37 minutes ago, placeholder said:

That may be true. But you'll have to come up with a credible source to establish that as a fact. So try again with an actual link to a credible source

 

From the landing page of the World News Forum:

Any alleged factual claims must be supported by a valid link to an approved credible source.

https://aseannow.com/forum/158-world-news/

its a screen shot from X, i don't use it much so i'm not familiar with it, but the OP's name is there, does he need to be credible too? i think Jack Posobiec,  is a verified account, is that a credible source, or do you only accept MSM outlets?.

[frank83628]

34 minutes ago, earlinclaifornia said:

Plenty MAGA  schooling Trump to fire the clowns 

Inspires more of them to deal in reality

Go Girl!

[bendejo]

Like these rallies amount to anything?  And how much $$$ they take in?  "It's the election, stupid!"

 

AOC was talking with Pelosi one day back when.  Trying to cajole the Speaker AOC told her "we have (some astronomic number) followers on Facebook" to which Pelosi replied "Yes, but in here you have only 4 votes."

 

Focus on what counts.

 

[placeholder]

2 minutes ago, frank83628 said:

its a screen shot from X, i don't use it much so i'm not familiar with it, but the OP's name is there, does he need to be credible too? i think Jack Posobiec,  is a verified account, is that a credible source, or do you only accept MSM outlets?.

Jack Posobiec was aguy who promoted the Pizzagate conspiracy allegations. 

Posobiec has promoted many falsehoods,^[27] leading to Philadelphia calling him the "King of Fake News" in 2017.^[16] He was one of the most prominent promoters on social media of the Pizzagate conspiracy theory, which falsely claimed that high-ranking officials were involved in a child-sex ring centered at a Washington, D.C., pizzeria.^[16][12] He live-streamed an investigation of the pizzeria and was asked to leave after attempting to broadcast a child's birthday party being held in a back room.^[64

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Posobiec#cite_note-philly-16

 

After the lie was exploded he claimed he did the live stream to discredit the theory. Uh-juh

 

He also tried to plant sign that said "Rape Melania" to discredit anti trump protestors.

 

Lots of others falsehoods too numerous to mention.

 

Once again, I'm not claiming that it's false, just that a link to a credible source is what's required.

And even if it were true, does that mean the at other venues there's also lots of empty seats?

[LosLobo]

3 hours ago, Tug said:

Love the sound of desperation 

I would suggest that he is just in denial over the likelihood that Trump will lose.

The Kübler-Ross model, also known as the Five Stages of Grief, was introduced by Swiss-American psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross. This model describes five common stages that people go through when dealing with grief and loss:

1. Denial: This initial stage involves disbelief and shock. People may struggle to accept the reality of the loss.
2. Anger: As the denial fades, anger can set in. This anger might be directed at oneself, others, or the situation.
3. Bargaining: In this stage, individuals may try to negotiate or make deals to reverse or lessen the loss.
4. Depression: Deep sadness and despair are common as the reality of the loss becomes more apparent.
5. Acceptance: Finally, acceptance involves coming to terms with the loss and finding a way to move forward.

[placeholder]

7 minutes ago, LosLobo said:

I would suggest that he is just in denial over the likelihood that Trump will lose.

The Kübler-Ross model, also known as the Five Stages of Grief, was introduced by Swiss-American psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross. This model describes five common stages that people go through when dealing with grief and loss:

1. Denial: This initial stage involves disbelief and shock. People may struggle to accept the reality of the loss.
2. Anger: As the denial fades, anger can set in. This anger might be directed at oneself, others, or the situation.
3. Bargaining: In this stage, individuals may try to negotiate or make deals to reverse or lessen the loss.
4. Depression: Deep sadness and despair are common as the reality of the loss becomes more apparent.
5. Acceptance: Finally, acceptance involves coming to terms with the loss and finding a way to move forward.

Whatever the validity of Kubler Ross's model may be, we can be sure that Phase 5 doesn't feature in Trump's character. Rather, it's Denialism.

[LosLobo]

23 minutes ago, placeholder said:

Whatever the validity of Kubler Ross's model may be, we can be sure that Phase 5 doesn't feature in Trump's character. Rather, it's Denialism.

Though I wasn't particularly talking about Trump, I tend to agree, it's been four years since the 2020 election, and he hasn't moved passed denialism as yet.

Edited August 12 by LosLobo

[placeholder]

Stephen King Reacts to Trump's Rant About Kamala Harris Rally Crowd Size

King, a vocal Trump critic, responded to Trump's rant on X, formerly Twitter, on Sunday afternoon, writing: "Is this real? If it is, Trump has really lost it."

Adam Parkhomenko, a Democratic strategist, replied to King on X and wrote: "Yep, and it's scarier than anything you've ever written."

https://www.newsweek.com/stephen-king-donald-trump-kamala-harris-plane-crowd-artificial-intelligence-1937624

 

I would amend Parkhomenko's comment to read: Yep, and it's weirder than anything you've ever written.