'Hope he's OK': Kamala Harris mocks Donald Trump's odd behavior at town hall
WASHINGTON - Video of Donald Trump bopping on stage to the beat of his musical playlist - from Luciano Pavarotti to the Village People, for nearly 40 minutes after a truncated town hall in a battleground state - triggered more questions Tuesday about the former president's mental stability.
"Hope he's okay," said Trump's Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, in a post on the social media platform X.
Trump cut short Monday night's Pennsylvania town hall and called for the musical interlude after a pair of medical emergencies interrupted his campaign event. Afterward, he called the impromptu concert a success.
"We started playing music while we waited, and just kept it going. So different, but it ended up being a GREAT EVENING!" the Republican presidential nominee said on his Truth Social platform, referring to the medical treatment of the attendees.
Just about every Trump event has a share of unusual moments, particularly his rallies. Monday's event near Philadelphia, with the 78-year-old Trump doing a semi-robot dance and just standing around while his playlist blared, provided another opportunity for supporters to extoll his unique style and for opponents to continuing questioning his mental stability.
Certainly a memorable one, in any event.
Some takeaways:
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'Let's not do any more questions'
Even though he called off the town hall, Trump stood awkwardly amid music ranging from Pavarotti's "Ave Maria" to "Hallelujah" to "Nothing Compares 2 U." He also bobbed his head and swayed his body to songs like the Village People's "Y.M.C.A." and James Brown's "It's A Man's Man's Man's World."
Several organizations that monitor Trump's public appearances played up the incident that happened in Oaks, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia. Many have repeatedly questioned the mental fitness of the former president.
"I don't recall seeing anything like this three weeks before an election," said an X post from the organization Republicans Against Trump. "Trump is unraveling in front of our eyes. He’s going to lose."
Kamala HQ, a rapid response arm of the Harris campaign, said: "Trump appears lost, confused, and frozen on stage as multiple songs play for 30+ minutes and the crowd pours out of the venue early."
Trump aides said that Democrats left out the part about why Trump began the concert.
The Republican nominee halted the town hall when a spectator succumbed to the heat. Shortly after the event resumed, a second spectator had a medical emergency and Trump decided to end the event and asked his producers to play music to lighten the mood.
"Let's not do any more questions, let's just listen to music," Trump said. "Let's make it into a musical. Who the hell wants to hear questions, right?"
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'Would anybody else like to faint?'
In addition to the music, Trump told a few jokes to sweating supporters in a hot and crowded building with inadequate air conditioning. South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, a Republican who had moderated the Trump-friendly town hall, stayed on the stage with him.
Assuring the crowd that the two people were going to be okay, Trump joked: "Would anybody else like to faint?"
Before that, the former president said of the sweaty atmosphere: "Personally, I enjoy this - we lose weight, you know? ... We can do this, lose four or five pounds, it's okay with me."
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As he answered questions from supporters in the crowd, Trump did mix up the date of Election Day.
Things will go well "if everybody gets out and votes on Jan. 5," Trump said at one point; Election Day is actually Nov. 5.
The former president also told supporters: "You know, (if) we win Pennsylvania, we win the whole thing."
'The energy was amazing'
As the music session went on, Trump aides raced to social media to promote the event.
"President Trump turned his town hall into a concert tonight and the energy was amazing," said national press secretary Karoline Leavitt on X. "He gives people hope in a way that no other politician is capable of."
Democrats also spread the word about the odd event and the former president.
Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., said on X that "this is very sad for our former president. Donald Trump appears brain dead. I hope his family steps in to find him help."
Trump aides said the swing state crowd loved his performance, and accused Harris and the Democrats of lashing out because they fear defeat.
"DESPERATE times call for desperate measures!" said Trump aide Dan Scavino, Jr., responding to Harris on X.
The decision by many supporters to stay for the music seemed to surprise Trump.
"There's nobody leaving," Trump said. "What's going on?"
(This story has been updated with more information.)
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kamala Harris mocks Donald Trump's odd behavior at town hall