Report: Trump Tweaks Rally Plan After Shooting

Rallies are now to take place indoors
By Arden Dier,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 24, 2024 12:25 PM CDT
Report: Trump Adjusts Rally Plan After Shooting
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump reacts after speaking at a campaign rally, Saturday, July 20, 2024, in Grand Rapids, Mich.   (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

The Trump campaign is making a big change after this month's attempted assassination: No more big outdoor rallies. That's according to NBC News, which spoke with sources who said Trump would participate only in indoor rallies and, possibly, "smaller outdoor events" utilizing venues with easy-to-secure entrances and no higher ground nearby. The change comes at the urging of the Secret Service, which apparently views indoor rallies as more easily controlled, per the Washington Post. Trump's thoughts on the matter aren't clear.

Before speaking at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee last week, the former president stated he felt safe inside, per NBC. An outdoor meet-and-greet had by then been canceled, according to the outlet. At an arena rally held Saturday in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Trump lamented that some supporters had been left outside, per the Guardian. But he told Newsmax on Tuesday that he felt safe at the event. "I have to feel safe. Otherwise, I guess, I wouldn't be able to do this stuff," he said.

Trump claimed his campaign had been asking the Secret Service for more agents to monitor outdoor crowds of more than 100,000 people but was "not getting them." The agency cited a lack of resources, per the Guardian. The campaign is now looking to book sports arenas and other indoor venues for upcoming events, though the Guardian reports the "more secure locations ... will prove more expensive." The Post notes Trump has held hundreds of outdoor rallies over the years, frequently at airports but also at fairgrounds and football stadiums. (More Donald Trump 2024 stories.)

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