Trump Cancels Kansas and Iowa Rallies Before Midterms
Donald Trump has cancelled his final in-person midterm rallies in Kansas and Iowa, and will address supporters by telephone instead. The Trump cancels Kansas Iowa rallies decision came on Thursday, after a sharp exchange with a reporter who asked whether the president was tired of travelling.
The Republican National Committee confirmed that the two weekend events would no longer take place as planned. Trump was due to appear in Salina, Kansas, on Saturday, and in Dubuque, Iowa, on Sunday. In their place, the party said, he will hold a large number of virtual telerallies in a series of states.
Trump cancels Kansas Iowa rallies after reporter exchange
The row began when Trump returned to Washington after campaigning in South Carolina. A Reuters reporter asked whether he was cancelling the Kansas rally because he was sick of travelling. Trump rejected the question in blunt terms.
“You are sick to ask that question. You are sick,” he told the reporter. “I feel perfect. You are disgusting. Put yourself in shape, you look like hell.”
Trump, 80, said he did not feel he had to go to Kansas. He said Senator Roger Marshall, the Republican facing an unexpectedly competitive race against Democratic challenger Adam Hamilton, was doing very well. “We are going to have a strong Tuesday night,” he added.
Later on Thursday, the Republican National Committee said the Iowa rally would also be cancelled. Iowa is home to several competitive congressional races. The committee said Republicans were in a strong position in both states, so the in-person rallies would no longer take place as scheduled.
What happens instead of the rallies
MAGA Inc, a campaign funding group aligned with Trump, said it would organise telephone rallies featuring the president in at least 19 states, including Kansas and Iowa, before Election Day. The party said Trump will still travel to rallies in several states before Tuesday, and that his final election rally is now set for Florida on Friday.
The shift matters because the November 3 midterm elections will decide whether Republicans keep their narrow control of the United States Senate and House of Representatives. Trump has urged his party to “pretend I’m on the ballot” in order to maximise turnout, despite his poor approval ratings, according to Dawn.
That context explains why the cancellations drew attention. A president who has campaigned almost daily is now closing the campaign, in two states at least, by telephone. The party insists the move reflects confidence, not retreat. Its statement pointed to the Republican position in Kansas and Iowa, rather than to any problem with the schedule.
A gruelling October campaign
Trump has kept up a punishing pace through October. Since October 1, he has hosted 25 rallies in 19 states, often speaking for more than an hour at each event. He is the oldest elected president in United States history, and the schedule has clearly tested him.
Sounding hoarse in Mississippi on Monday, he told supporters: “God didn’t make your vocal cords to do a rally every day.” The remark, made days before the cancellations, now reads as an early sign of the strain of near-daily travel.
Even so, Trump insisted his health was not the reason for the change. When the reporter pressed him again on Thursday, he repeated that he felt perfect.
Why the exchange matters
The incident is the latest in a long series of confrontations between Trump and reporters on the campaign trail. It also shows how closely his stamina is being watched in the final days before the vote. Questions about his travel schedule are, in effect, questions about whether he can sustain the pace he set at the start of October.
For Republican candidates in Kansas and Iowa, the practical question is whether a telephone rally carries the same weight as an in-person visit. The party is betting that it will, at least in states where it believes it is already ahead.
Feature Pakistan reported earlier on the midterm campaign, as former president Barack Obama attacked Trump’s record ahead of the vote. That earlier coverage set out the stakes of the election, which will shape the remaining two years of Trump’s presidency.
Frequently asked questions
Which rallies did Trump cancel?
Trump cancelled in-person rallies in Salina, Kansas, on Saturday, and Dubuque, Iowa, on Sunday. He will hold virtual telerallies instead.
