Former President Donald Trump has blamed the White House after his Wisconsin rally was moved to a smaller venue on Saturday.
Speaking at a rally in Erie, Pennsylvania, on Sunday, Trump said the administration “would not let us have” 50,000 come to an outside rally in Wisconsin the previous day.
Trump was originally scheduled to attend a larger outdoor rally at an airport in Wisconsin on Saturday. The rally was moved to an arts center in Prairie du Chien because the Secret Service did not have the manpower to secure the venue as the United Nations [U.N.] General Assembly meeting was happening in New York, NBC News and CBS News reported
“We were in Wisconsin yesterday, and except for the fact that the administration would not let us have—we had 50,000, maybe more people, and we were going to do an outdoor rally, and we ended up having to do it inside, in front of about a thousand people,” Trump said.
“But they didn’t want me to be outside. They said they couldn’t get us enough people because they were guarding the United Nations and Iran.”
Trump is reported to be cutting down on holding large outdoor rallies for safety reasons following the assassination attempt against him at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13. The Secret Service were criticized for the security failures which allowed the gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks to climb a roof and open fire on the former president.
Former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally on September 29, 2024 in Erie, Pennsylvania. Trump said the Biden administration was to blame for his rally in Wisconsin being moved inside.
Jeff Swensen/Getty Images
Trump had previously blamed his 2024 election rival Vice President Kamala Harris for the venue change in Wisconsin.
“Kamala wouldn’t allow for protection to take care of this crowd,” Trump posted on Truth Social Saturday while sharing an image purporting to show his supporters in the key swing state. “So rather than having 50,000 in a field, we’re using a small arena—but she is not going to stop us, and everyone knows, she doesn’t have what it takes!”
The Erie rally was also held indoors at the Bayfront Convention Center. Trump has long cited the size of his rallies as a proof of his popularity, sometimes exaggerating how many people attended them by thousands.
Newsweek has contacted the Secret Service and the Biden administration for comment via email.
Trump added at his Erie rally that “Iran is threatening my life, and they’re guarding the president of Iran,” at the U.N. General assembly.
Trump’s campaign recently said it had been briefed by intelligence officials on “real and specific threats” from Iran to assassinate the former president.
At the rally in Erie, Trump also criticized President Joe Biden after he did not “say anything” regarding the alleged assassination plan’s from Iran.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian gave a speech at the U.N. General Assembly’s annual gathering of world leaders on September 24. Biden delivered his U.N. speech the same day.
An unnamed Secret Service official briefed on the Wisconsin rally told CBS News and Axios that the agency was “never configured to provide such an elevated level of protection for an increasing number of protected.”
The Secret Service provide protection for Biden, former presidents, vice presidents, presidential and vice presidential candidates, and their families.
“Our personnel and equipment are being pushed to their limits to sustain the current operational tempo,” the official said.
“This proposed Wisconsin event also took place during the United Nations General Assembly, where the Secret Service is responsible for the safety and security of over 140 world leaders amid a challenged global threat level.”
Anthony Guglielmi, Secret Service chief of communications, told Axios Trump is “receiving heightened levels of U.S. Secret Service protection and our top priority is mitigating risks to ensure his continued safety at all times.”
“Out of concern for operational security, we cannot provide specific details about resources allocated for event security or communications between agency personnel and our protectees,” Guglielmi added.
