'Optics' and 'vibes': Trump confidant says he’s 'obsessed' with MSG rally

15 October 2024

Donald Trump is “obsessed” with his upcoming October 27 rally at Madison Square Garden in New York City, according to a confidant who spoke with The Bulwarkon the condition of anonymity.

“[Trump] has just been obsessed with this for at least a year,” the confidant said, according to The Bulwark. “This is his campaign. So it’s happening.”

Trump, The Bulwark’s Marc Caputo reports, boasted to the confidant that he’s “gonna fill the Garden.”

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“Headlining Madison Square Garden represents the fulfillment of a longtime dream for an outer-borough kid who always has a New York state of mind,” Caputo wrote Tuesday.

As The Bulwark notes, the rally is less an effort to pick up votes in solidly-blue New York and more “a play for the candidate’s id.” And it will cost the former president a pretty penny.

Per The Bulwark:

The campaign will probably shell out at least $1 million to rent Madison Square Garden, pay union labor to build the stage, and manage the event, a source familiar with the discussions said. The arena can hold nearly 20,000 people.

But despite the cost, one Trump adviser told The Bulwark “Madison Square Garden has already paid for itself” in earned media.

“It’s great optics,” another adviser said. “Optics matter.”

Trump advisers also say rallies in deep blue states like New York and California “could influence some congressional races in the hopes that Republicans keep control of the House,” Caputo reports.

“The reason we have a majority in the House right now is because of California and New York,” a source who discussed the rallies with the former president told The Bulwark. “You pick up a seat here, you pick up a seat there, the NRCC [National Republican Congressional Committee] does its job and all of a sudden you’re not impeached on your first day in office.”

A third adviser who spoke with Caputo said Trump’s campaign is “going around you guys” in traditional media.

As The Bulwark notes, the former president has made appearances on “male-centric podcasts" in recent months. In an interview with the "Full Send" podcast last weekend, Trump suggested he's going to sit down with "The Joe Rogan Experience" — the number one podcast in the world — before the election is over.

“Oh sure I would,” Trump said when asked if he'd appear on Rogan's podcast. “In fact, I think I’m doing it.”

As for MSG? "It is what it is," the third adviser said. "Trump is going to sell out Madison Square Garden and he’s gonna let everyone know and that’s a win."

Confronted with the fact that admission is free for Trump supporters at his MSG rally, the adviser told The Bulwark it “doesn’t matter,”

READ MORE: Internal polling reveals warning signs for Ted Cruz and Senate GOP: memo

“Who cares about that?” The adviser asked.

Meanwhile, Trump’s opponent Kamala Harris has embarked on a “media blitz” of her own, including a groundbreaking appearance last week on the “Call Her Daddy" podcast. Reuters on Monday reported Harris could also sit down with Rogan "as she works to shore up support with male voters."

"Harris campaign officials, in the final stretch of the U.S. presidential campaign, met with Rogan's team this week but an appearance has not been confirmed yet, said two of the sources, who have knowledge of the matter," Reuters reports.

But some observers see Harris’ pivot to nontraditional media as a warning sign for the Democratic nominee.

The Daily Beast's Sean Craig said the leak of the Harris team's talks with Rogan, coupled with her upcoming interview with Fox News' Bret Baier, suggest polling "fears among Democrats trickled up to the Harris braintrust."

And conservative columnist Bethany Mandel, explaining why she thinks Trump will win in 2024, noted, “Over the last week, Harris and Walz have been making the media and new media rounds, drastically changing their communications strategy.”

“You don't do that if your current strategy is working,” Mandel wrote. “… This is a vibes election, and the vibes aren't looking great for Democrats."

Read the full report at The Bulwark.

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