Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN) was greeted by MAGA protesters during a stop in Butler County, Pennsylvania.
Butler, a solid red county that was the site of the first assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump on July 13, was visited by Walz on Tuesday for a campaign stop. A small crowd of pro-Trump protesters demonstrated on the opposite end of the street from the Bloom Cafe, a popular coffee shop by the Mars school district.
An eyewitness reported about 15 protesters as of 4 p.m., with a steady number of supporters trickling in after.
Protesters wielded Trump signs and flags, with one saying, “He’ll be back.”
“I’m an army veteran, and I’ve been seeing a lot of signs saying, ‘Veterans for Walz,’” Matt Moon, 31, told the Washington Examiner in a phone interview. “But he deserted his own unit when they went to Iraq … I don’t know why anyone would vote for him.”
Ben Rathgen, 57, a retired law enforcement officer, protested while holding a sign saying, “Trump secure border, Kamala open border.”
“I got a call from my wife … right away I was like, ‘you’ve got to be kidding me …’ I just drove by to see if it was true, and sure enough it was,” he told the Washington Examiner.
“I don’t agree with Walz and the Harris campaign. I don’t believe in anything they stand for … They’re ruining this country for us and our kids and grandkids,” Rathgen added when asked why he was protesting.
Bloom Cafe was cordoned off by Secret Service personnel, forcing the protesters to demonstrate across the street.
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Walz’s visit came as part of a campaign stop to appeal to rural voters in western Pennsylvania.
Butler is a red enclave north of Pittsburgh. Trump won the county in 2020 with two-thirds of the vote. He has held three rallies there since 2020.