President Donald Trump has been met by a public display of taunts, jeers and NSFW protest signs on his final campaign stretch.
Trump, 80, visited Dubuque, Iowa, on Sunday, ahead of Tuesday’s midterm election. The appearance came after he reversed his initial decision to cancel the trip and appear via tele-rally instead.
The about-face gave anti-Trump demonstrators the chance to share their thoughts with the president in person.
As the presidential motorcade passed through the streets on the way to the rally venue at the Five Flags Civic Center, a string of protesters held up signs and made obscene gestures at Trump, according to pictures captured by Reuters and Getty photographers.
One NSFW sign read, “2 Days A-----e,” referring to the date of the midterm election, while multiple people were photographed flipping Trump the bird.
Signs waved at the president included, “Trump Do Better,” “Jail The Pedos,” and “The Only Orange Monarch I Want is a Butterfly.”
Others included “The World’s a Trumpster Fire,” “Trump Epstein Files Coming Soon!,” and “Guardian of the Pedophiles.”
Some protesters shouted at people attending the rally as they entered the venues, the Des Moines Register reported, and noted signs that read “This Regime Doesn’t Care About You,” and “Elect a Clown, Expect a Circus.”
Other signs called for Trump’s impeachment and an end to his war with Iran, according to the Iowa Capital Dispatch, noting that Republican candidate Ashley Hinson asked the crowd at the rally to stand and chant “U.S.A,” so the protesters outside could hear.
The protests followed a report that the Trump administration had attempted to make Dubuque more welcoming to the president.
Trump’s team wanted to shield a racial solidarity mural on the city-owned Five Flags Civic Center, according to the Des Moines Register.
On Saturday, social media users highlighted a tarp being placed over Dubuque artist Shelby Fry’s “Solidarity” mural. Late on Saturday, the city released a statement saying that it was not asked if the exterior of the Five Flags Civic Center “could be modified and did not authorize the tarp.”
The mural, which is 105 feet long and 28 feet wide, depicts 10 raised Black, brown and white fists, with a letter on each to spell out the word “SOLIDARITY.” It has been in place on the side of the building since 2020.
The letters also include a Pride rainbow and emblems for disability rights, mental health and gender diversity, all triggers for the Trump administration.
The White House had wanted to erect a U.S. flag on the building instead, according to KCRG-TV.
The anti-Trump sentiment also continued inside the venue, during his near-two-hour speech. The Des Moines Register said protesters inside were chanted down and escorted out of the venue three times.
The interruptions have become a fixture at Trump’s rallies this month, and he repeated his usual disclaimer in Dubuque, claiming, “They’re paid protesters, they go away quickly. They’re like a gnat, they’re like a little fly.”
He continued, “There’s usually two or three of them per rally,” claiming they get paid $250.
Trump seemed to lose his temper after being shouted for a third time during his Iowa rally, barking, “You’re a stupid person!”
Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek is narrowly leading Trump-endorsed Ashley Hinson for the Senate seat of outgoing GOP Sen. Joni Ernst in Iowa, with a MS NOW poll saying Turek is on 47.1 percent to Hinson on 46.5 percent.
Trump’s second rally for Sunday took place in Salina, Kansas, where he was greeted by even more disturbance.
Authorities escorted 11 people out of Heartland Credit Union Arena during Trump’s rally, according to a statement released by the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office, reported by The Wichita Eagle.
One woman was filmed putting her middle fingers up at Trump as she was taken out of the venue, while another shouted “He’s a felon” as she was escorted out.
One person escorted out was Jeffrey Doshier, a Kansas Army National Guard veteran, who told The Wichita Eagle he shouted, “Release the Epstein files, you spineless coward.”
Doshier said he had been “horrified” by seeing footage of protesters at Trump rallies. “The last few videos that have gone viral, where women have been assaulted and they’ve been mocked and body-shamed,” he said. “So I just felt this moral obligation as a veteran who loves this country and served this country to hold our leaders accountable.”
The White House has announced Trump will make his closing pitch at the midterms at his problematic Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on Monday afternoon.
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House and Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office for comment.
