TGP Photos: Trump Butler, PA Rally Part One-Before | The Gateway Pundit | by Kristinn Taylor


TGP Photos: Trump Butler, PA Rally Part One-Before

It was a normal day for a Trump rally. Except the traffic getting into the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, a small town located an hour north of Pittsburgh, was heavier than usual and backed up for almost two hours.

Some friendly folks living on the two-lane route offered up their lawns for parking ($20) or had lemonade and snack stands set up in their driveways in the 90-degree heat of a sunny July day.

People who parked along the route and were walking to the Butler Farm Show rally location were making better time than the tens of thousands of us in cars trying to get to the venue’s parking lots several miles away.

After parking, it was a long walk through the parking lot to the merchandise row and then a long wait to the check-in lines. Once inside, the rally had the feel of any other Trump outdoors rally to most attendees.

Butler County GOP booth at the Trump rally in Butler, PA, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.
Line to get into the Trump rally in Butler, PA snaked through merchandise row, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.

Secret Service officers patrolled the grounds of the rally. including the area at the far end away from the stage.

A Secret Service officer patrols the grounds of the Trump rally in Butler, PA, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.

The Trump campaign had a table set up to recruit volunteers for Trump Force 47.

Trump Force 47 volunteer recruitment table at Trump Butler, PA rally, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.

The rally was held in a large field at the Butler Farm Show property. Plenty of room for tens of thousands of supporters.

Tens of thousands of supporters turned out for the Trump rally in Butler, PA, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.

The flag over the stage got tangled up by the wind. At one point it appeared to look like an angel or a cross. Not seen in this photo, the press pen had at least two armed officers from the Department of Homeland Security Investigations unit patrolling inside–both women. Their presence struck me as unusual for the Trump rallies I’ve covered.

View from the rear of the press pen at the Trump Butler, PA rally, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.

The flag was untangled and re-hoisted above the stage.

American flag untangled and re-hoisted over the stage at the Trump rally, Butler, PA, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.

360 degree video taken from the rear of the press pen of the overflow crowd at 5 p.m.

“I’m voting for the convicted felon.”

A supporter at the Trump rally in Butler, PA, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.
Supporters in line for snacks at the Trump rally, Butler, PA, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.

“Take America Back.”

Supporters at Trump Butler, PA rally, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.
view from rear of field for Trump Butler, PA rally, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.

Many attendees I spoke to were from Butler, like these ladies, or nearby. Also, like these ladies, many in the crowd were not who one would expect to see at a Republican rally. Evidence of Trump expanding the base was definitely witnessed at the Butler rally.

Supporters at the Trump rally, Butler, PA, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.
Couple at the Trump Butler, PA rally, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.

Before Trump took the stage, one of the sniper teams on the roof of a building behind the stage were checking something out. Attendees in the top row of the bleachers on stage left stood up to look at what had drawn the interest of the snipers.

A sniper team can be seen on the roof of a building behind the stage at the Trump, Butler, PA rally before Trump took the stage, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.

“If this flag offends you, I’ll help you pack.”

Supporter at the Trump rally, Butler, PA, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.

Trump rallies are dance parties. Even in the 90 degree heat, some had the energy to do the YMCA dance as they waited for a late arriving Trump to take the stage.

Supporters at the Trump rally, Butler, PA, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.

Cellphones held up high to capture President Trump taking the stage to Lee Greenwood’s God Bless the U.S.A.

Cellphones up as President Trump arrives for his Butler, PA rally, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.
Supporters look on as President Trump takes the stage at a rally in Butler, PA, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.,

President Trump started speaking a few minutes after 6 p.m. My view of the stage was obscured so I took some photos of him on the jumbo TV screen.

A woman on a camera riser partially blocks the view of a jumbo TV screen at the Trump rally in Butler, PA, July 13, 2024.

This is the last photo I took of President Trump before the shooting. Everything was normal–until it wasn’t.

President Trump speaks at a rally in Butler, PA, July 13, 2024, photo by Kristinn Taylor.

Photos from after the shooting in Part Two.

Photo of author

Kristinn Taylor has contributed to The Gateway Pundit for over ten years. Mr. Taylor previously wrote for Breitbart, worked for Judicial Watch and was co-leader of the D.C. Chapter of FreeRepublic.com. He studied journalism in high school, visited the Newseum and once met David Brinkley.

You can email Kristinn Taylor here, and read more of Kristinn Taylor’s articles here.

 

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